


Why Didn't You Kill Me?

by SummerHours



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Alternate Universe - Historical, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Baby Juleka, Eventual Smut, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Lukanette, Older Marinette, Romance, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Vikings, Younger Luka, battles, like not at the end end btw more like somewhere in between, lukanette endgame
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-25
Updated: 2020-12-29
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:40:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 34
Words: 60,700
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25502263
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SummerHours/pseuds/SummerHours
Summary: Lukell (Luka) is an orphaned teen in a small village in the area now known as Normandy. He tries desperately to protect his baby sister, Julaeka (Juleka), but everything changes when a sympathetic Viking shield-maiden discovers their hiding spot during a raid.I swear it will get explicit eventually, give it time to develop lol -- this is sort of slow-burn esc, the chapters are pretty short.New chapter every Sunday!
Relationships: Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe, Chloé Bourgeois/Félix Graham de Vanily, Emilie Agreste/Gabriel Agreste | Papillon | Hawk Moth, Gabriel Agreste | Papillon | Hawk Moth/Nathalie Sancoeur, Juleka Couffaine/Rose Lavillant, Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Sabine Cheng/Tom Dupain
Comments: 150
Kudos: 75





	1. How old are you?

Lukell awoke to a loud crashing a few houses down, accompanied by battle cries and screaming. He scrambled out of bed immediately and ran to his baby sister. _There was a raid._ The Vikings had been raiding his village, along with its neighbors, for decades. One of the previous battles had orphaned Lukell and his year-old sister at the time, Julaeka. He knew it was best to hide. He knew they would enslave the children they found, he was a teenager, he was pretty sure they would kill him and take Julaeka. He would not let that happen.

He had dug out a small area under the floorboards under the bed. It wasn’t comfortable but it would suffice, he just had to keep Julaeka quiet. She was somewhere nearly three and she spooked easily. He grabbed his knife and stuffed it in his pocket, then he sped over to Julaeka. He lifted her from her makeshift crib, trying desperately to not wake her as he moved quickly. _They could be in here any second_. She stirred slightly as he lowered them beneath the floor, nearly giving Lukell a heart attack before he realized she was still asleep. Once they were settled he pulled the boards over him and tried to lay still. 

Two Danes had come crashing through the door to their little cabin. “Arrr!- Empty,” there was a somewhat feminine voice buried under the gruff and hoarseness from yelling. Lukell listened as they knocked something over and found his bag of silver. One of them shook it around laughing.

“Not all that empty!” He bellowed. Lukell heard his steps inching toward the door, “I’ll let you finish up. I need to get back into the action!” Lukell heard the woman huff as the other pair of feet barrelled out of the door. He heard her muttering under her breath as she explored the cabin. She stumbled into the bedroom.

The cabin was small, just two rooms. This was to be expected. But it was still horrifying for Lukell. The creaking floorboards or the crashing and rummaging just above them could easily wake Julaeka at any moment and while she was usually a rather quiet baby, she was loud when scared. He heard a foot land just beside his bed, just beside them. “What’s this?” The woman muttered. Then something hit the ground.

It was so close to them, it startled Lukell, and it woke Julaeka. Lukell softly rubbed her back, trying to get her back to sleep before she became as frantic as he was. The woman bent down to pick up whatever had fallen. The sound of her knees landing on the ground made Julaeka’s eyes widen. Lukell caught her mouth just before a wail could escape but the muffled sound still alerted the Viking of their existence. She heard the woman pause and the shuffle slightly. Her hands now rested on the floor as well as she peered under the bed. She knocked on the wood and smiled at the hollow sound it responded with. “Found you...” she whispered, the menacing tone of her voice translating to pure fear in Lukell’s heart. He felt a tear or two dripping out of his eyes as he listened to his bed being shoved across the room. He heard something metal wrenching up the very wood he hid beneath. “Arrr-” she stopped and looked at him. “You’re just a boy and a baby.”

“W-wha-at?” He stuttered. 

“You’re- how old are you?” She pointed her axe at the Julaeka, “how old is that?”

“S-seventeen?” He choked out, “a-and t-two.” He was terrified. The woman standing over him was built. Her arms were muscular, one was limp at her side, holding an axe like it was just a twig. The other rested on a black mace that was hooked onto her belt. Despite her threatening physique, her eyes were soft and sympathetic.

“We-” they heard someone entering the cabin. She quickly threw the floorboard back in place and stood on it. “What’s up?”

“What are you doing? You’ve been in here for a while, we're heading out soon.”

“I thought I heard something under the floorboards.” Lukell swallowed hard, “I tore up a few and didn’t find anything. I’ll be done soon.”

“None of the floorboards are torn up?” Lukell swallowed again, somehow harder.

“Yeah I put them back, you know how prone I am to tripping. If I tripped and fell on my axe because of something I left out?! I’d never have a chance of escaping Niflheim.” They both laughed at her joke and the man started to leave.

“Hurry up.” And he was gone. 

She kneeled again and turned to the floorboards. “I’m coming back for you. Be ready.” And then she was gone. _WhAt?_


	2. I'm sorry!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I'm not the best at historically accurate dialogue but... bare with me I'm trying?

Lukell didn’t know what to do. He hadn’t moved from his spot in the floor, Julaeka had fallen back asleep. _What did that woman mean?_ He pondered his options, whether or not his life was in danger- whether or not his life was in _more_ danger. _What did she mean ‘come back for you’??_ He thought, _come back and kill us? Come back and kidnap us? Should I run? What will she do to me if she finds out we ran?_

\--)-(----)-(--

“Oi! Aldarin!” Maeri beckoned to her friend over, “when’re we leaving for home?”

“Uh- pretty sure we’re heading back tomorrow?” His blonde locks were long and plastered down with sweat, he wiped them aside to look her in the eyes.

“That's what I thought.”

“Why do you ask?”

“You know the ritual.” Maeri shrugged and Aldarin laughed.

“You sure I can't come along?”

“I need me a lucky rabbit and I need to be away from you stinking piss pots,” she scrunched her nose at him, “before I’m stuck with you for a week.”

“I mean, if you’re going for a hunt get me a squirrel? You know it’s my favorite.”

“Fine. Tell Alva I’m sorry too, I really need to do this one alone.” He looked at her with a hint of worry in his eyes, “I’m fine I just think I’ve been spending too much time with people you know? I need to catch up with the trees.” They chuckled at her preferred company. 

“Alright, if I’m dead when you’re back I’ll blame you.”

“Alright, see you at sun down.” She rammed her fist onto her chest in a pledge-like manner before turning and running into the woods nearby. Aldarin watched the black-haired badass for a moment, then he returned to walking before he fell too far behind in the group. 

\--)--)--(--(--

Lukell still hadn’t moved, _despite the discomfort_ , from his hiding spot. He hadn’t meant to remain for so long but he lost track of time as he thought. He was still deep in thought when he was violently yanked from it by a loud crash in his cabin.

“Where are you?” She called out. He didn’t move, he didn’t make a sound, he wasn’t sure what to do. Lukell tried desperately to place menace in her tone but it just rang sweetly through the air, “are- are you still in the floor!?” She pried up the wood and stood over him, hands on her hips. She looked quite unimpressed. “You didn’t move!?!”

He sat up and faced her, nearly yelling “I’m sorry! I didn’t know what to do!” His face immediately morphed from annoyed to fearful. “Oh my- I’m sorry! I didn’t mean-”

“It’s fine,” she shrugged it off. Lukell realized she probably dealt with quite a bit of yelling on a daily basis. “I suppose I wasn’t _too_ clear.” She sat on his bed and watched him as he bobbed the slowly waking Julaeka on his chest. “Well… I’m taking you two out of here.”

His brows furrowed as he lifted his eyes from the baby to the lady, “why?”

“I guess you could say I’m ‘taking pity?’” She shrugged again, “I know you think us Vikings are savage, murderous whores who kill anyone who crosses them but- well- okay I guess we are. But we’re also wicked good company.” Her smirk was indeed wicked, Lukell swallowed -- now nervous for even more reasons. “Seriously, you’re safer with us. We’re not the worst group that raids these parts, I wouldn’t want to leave y-”

“If you’re all _so_ decent why didn’t you take us with your group at first?” He snapped at her, again regretting the sharpness in his voice. “Why did you wait and come back?”

“They can be a nervous crew... sometimes you can’t just do things on a whim.” Lukell realized she really wanted to help and just didn’t know how. He knew she was right, staying was just not safe. And maybe, maybe her group wasn’t as bad as the rest. She seemed decent enough. 

“Okay...” He stood in front of her, “you’re taking us where? What do we need?” She smiled confidently at him, a slight variation of the smirk he had previously witnessed.

“Take whatever you want. I doubt you’ll ever be back,” she noted the little frown he dawned, “at least- not for a while.”

“Alright.” He began fumbling around the cabin. He tugged a bag lose from a pile and started bouncing around the cabin and stuffing it. He was struggling somewhat, he was working with one hand. He had his other arm wrapped around Julaeka, clutching her to his chest. He absentmindedly bobbed his knees whenever he stood in one spot for a while, humming quietly to calm himself and his sister. He didn't notice the smiling shield-maiden watching from his bed.

\--)-(----)-(--

“Do you need a hand?” She offered, suddenly beside him. She outstretched her arms for the baby and he stared at her, appalled.

“Uh-uh. Noooo way.” He quickly walked around her. Despite Maeri’s offense, she couldn’t help but chuckle at the way he bounced as he gently moved with his baby.

“What?” Her hands were on her hips, “I’ll have you know I’m great with kids.”

“Sure. When would you even get experience with kids.” He didn’t look up from the small clothes he was piling into the bag.

“A friend of mine has seven siblings, almost all little, I take care of them all the time.” The pride in her tone seemed to reassure him a little, but not enough.

“If you say so.‘ He turned to her, “I’m sorry but I still don't quite trust you that much. I’m sure you understand.” She nodded, “I’m nearly done anyway. I’m assuming I should grab food?”

“Don’t bother, we’re going hunting before we go back.”

“Oh… okay.” His eyes drifted to something in the corner, it looked like a crate with strings on it? He looked wistful but he quickly turned away, “I guess I’m done then.”

“Okay.” He started to walk out of the room, “Hey, wait, what’s that?” Maeri gestured to the thing in the corner.

“Nothing.” He muttered as he continued walking, “are we going?”

“Yeah, sorry.” She gave one more glance to the thing before throwing some blankets over her shoulder and following him out the door.


	3. Who are you?

Lukell had led the Viking out of the village but they’re roles switched as soon as they hit the wilderness. “This way,” she beckoned, he followed. Julaeka had been surprisingly calm. Lukell followed her into the woods, they weaved through the trees as they sank deeper in the trees. Lukell realized he hadn’t really taken in the woman’s appearance yet; he watched her walk ahead of him. 

She stood strong and walked with purpose, occasionally swinging her axe at branches and thin trees daring to cross her path. Her dark hair, so black it almost looked blue in the light, was tied back in a ponytail. A few braids laid on her head, they were tied into the ponytail, mingling with the loose hair as it swayed with each step. A long, thick strip of red material wrapped around her torso diagonally up and back down, crossing once or twice and leaving small patches of uncovered skin here and there. It only wrapped around one shoulder, the two ends of the strip were tied into a little bow on the small of her back. When it wasn’t in her hands, her axe was strapped across her back. Two black metal plates sat atop her shoulders, a pile of blankets draped over one. Strips of the same metal hung from a leather belt to form her skirt, the gaps between which were filled with the black pants she wore beneath. It all flowed into her thick fur boots. Lukell realized his eyes had spent particularly long observing the back of her skirt, he would have slapped himself if Julaeka hadn’t made his hands full.

They stopped in a small clearing, the sound of a running stream nearby decorating the ambient noise of birds and leaves in the breeze. Julaeka wanted to walk around a little so Lukell gently put her on the ground, instructing her to stay close. “I’ve got to do some hunting.” She turned to him and smiled, “get comfortable.” She dropped the blankets on a rock and sprinted off into the woods. Lukell set up camp while keeping a close eye on Julaeka.

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

Lukell was sitting next to Julaeka when he turned to see her emerging from the woods. The sun was setting, the dimming forest revealed her like she was a fleeting opportunity, something needing to be observed quickly. Two rabbits hung off the side of her hips, fastened to her belt behind her mace, a deep crimson was splattered on the black metal. She smiled when she saw the makeshift fire-pit he made. “Looks good!” She sat on one of the rocks around it and set to work on the rabbits.

“Thanks.” Lukell patted his sister on the shoulder, “she helped me find some tinder.” He chuckled, “she kept a few twigs for herself, though.” He watched the toddler try to stack the sticks perpendicularly on their centers, starting over every time it tumbled.

“She’s cute.” Lukell nodded, his eyes still fixated on Julaeka, “what happened to her mom? Where you too together for a while or-”

He coughed, “what!?” His eyes widened as they quickly met hers, frantically trying to alert her of how wrong she was. “Nooooo! No, no, she’s not _mine_.” He laughed awkwardly, “she’s my sister!”

“Oh,” she put down the rabbit to laugh, “sorry!”

“It’s okay,” he laughed it off. He watched her go back to the rabbit, a small hunting knife carving it up intricately. The red material left a diamond of skin under her breasts, her belly button was exposed as well. She was looking down, leaving Lukell only her hair to look at. 

“So,” she didn’t look up, “why don’t you start a fire?”

“Okay.” Lukell patted Julaeka on the head before leaning on his knees to try and form a spark using a rock and a knife of his own. “Hey, uh...” he paused to blow on a spark that caught, a small flame beginning to grow, “who are you?” He sat back beside Julaeka, “what’s your name?”

She chuckled, “Maeri.” She looked up momentarily, “my full name is Maerinorka, but I go by Maeri.”

“Maeri,” he echoed, “that’s pretty...” he almost sounded dazed.

“What?” Maeri was starting the second rabbit.

“I just- I guess I wasn’t expecting it.”

“What?” She repeated, looking at him to smirk, “Were you expecting my name to be Murder or something?”

“Well- no...” He tilted his head to the side while he tried to work through his thoughts, “I don’t know. I don’t know many Vikings,” he chuckled. “To be fair you’re kind of breaking all of my expectations.”

“Oh, really?” Her face stayed down.

“Well my best impression of Vikings before you was watching them raid my village and butcher my parents...” he trailed off, taking her eyes off her for the first time in a while. He stared at the fire, watching the mesmerizing flames dance, twisting and curling away from each other before spinning back together. He felt a new weight on his lap but he failed to tear his eyes from the fire, they continued to separate and reunite but each round was unique and new. 

“Hey,” he felt something on his shoulder, finally snapping away from the blazing wood. He realized Julaeka had crawled into his lap and was clinging to his chest, her head buried in the fabric over his stomach. His arms had wrapped around her, holding her close. He looked to the side slightly to see Maeri’s hand curling around his shoulder, she had moved to sit next to him. “I’m sorry,” she whispered softly in his ear. He looked down at his sister and sighed.

“It’s… It’s fine.”

“No, it’s not.” She almost sounded angry for him, “I have a feeling I know who did that to you.” He turned to face her, he wasn’t crying but his saliva suddenly felt thick, he felt the edges of his lips being yanked downward by his memories. She lifted her other hand to brush some of his hair aside, her expression blended sympathy, anger, and admiration. “There is a particularly awful group of Danes who happen to be rivals of mine.” She still spoke soft, but now her voice had raised from a whisper, “They took my mother from me...”

“They killed your mother?” His voice shook, he was surprised by the raw nature of his voice. 

She looked down, “worse...” her voice sounded hoarser than before, “they _took_ her...” She shuddered and turned to the flames herself. Lukell’s hand rose from Julaeka momentarily to turn Maeri’s face back to his. They stared at each other, he couldn’t look away from her if he wanted to. Her eyes were blue, the red of the fire to her right contrasted the dark woods to her left. The disparity split her irises down the middle; half was a bright and flickering purple, the other half was a dark deep sea blue. Half of her face was lit up, what he could see of the other side was heavily darkened by the shadow of her nose and lips. The warm light of the fire displayed her face with an orange tint, the round shape of her nose was softened. Her lips looked red like she had been taking her anger out on them.

“I-” he coughed lightly into the silence, taking the opportunity to break free of her magnetizing gaze. “I’m so sorry...” he tightened his hold on Julaeka. “We- we were on a trip with a friend of mine when they attacked, we were just returning when we saw them.” He traced a circle on the toddler’s back, realizing she might have fallen asleep. “We hid in the woods for two days to be sure they were gone when we went back. Julaeka, my sister,” he nodded down to her, “she was a little over one at the time. It’s been almost two years, she won’t remember but I can’t shed the image of my parents when we found them...” He shivered.

“I’m sorry...” she stood and moved back to her previous spot across from him. She punctured the earth around the fire with four y-shaped sticks, creating the corners of a rectangle. She laid two flat sticks in the crooks of the ‘y’s, forming two raised lines on either side of the fire. She speared the two rabbits with two long sticks she had sharpened at some point and laid them across the fire, the lines holding them up. He realized she was trying to avoid telling her story. “My name is Lukell by the way, I think I already mentioned her name.” He gestured to Julaeka.

“Cute names,” she chirped, glancing up briefly from the rabbits, “you guys will fit in nicely with my group.”

\--)--)--(--(--

The rabbits were good, Maeri thanked them for giving her something to do instead of talk. She noticed when returning to their little camp that Lukell had laid out blankets beside the fire, “Which one’s mine?” She gestured to the two blankets with one hand while wiping her mouth with the other. 

He shrugged “up to you?”

“Hmmm… lucky left?” He shrugged again, she chuckled and smiled at him, “I’ll take right then.”

“Well if you want left we can-” he tried to explain the minor flaw in her logic,

“No, I want you to have the luck!” He smiled at the gesture and let it go.

He let a little chuckle of his out tumble from his lips as he shook his head slightly, “you’re an interesting girl...” he looked up at her, “or woman?” One of his brows lifted slightly in question and she laughed more fully.

“Whatever you call a lady of 18 years.” 

“Well, would you call me a man?” She looked the somewhat scrawny figure up and down. Orange bounced off of his blue tunic and pants, his leather boots looked a little big on him. Loose black strands of hair fell around his face, slightly curling towards the ends. She let out a quick exhale and looked to the side for a second, she turned back to him desperately trying to bite down a smile. She could see one of his own crawling onto his face. 

“Not quite.” She laughed, “but you’re not a child either. You’re a- hmmm...” she fished through her brain for the word she was looking for. 

“A young man, an old child, a half-man,” he started listing off potential titles for himself, “an almost man, an attractive man,” he raised his eyebrows a little at that one and they both laughed hard. “Whaaat?” He tried to feign offense, “I know it's subjective but I’m not _that_ bad, am I?”

“N-no,” she mustered between laughs, “you’re cute for sure.” She winked and he nearly keeled over, laughing a little differently than before, almost like he was using it to bury something under. “Anyway, I’m tired and we have to be on the move tomorrow so I’m going to bed.” She moved to the blanket laid to the right of the fire, ironically his left. “Sleep, man-boy. You’ll need it tomorrow.” She rolled away from the fire to get comfortable, hearing a couple of foot steps before a similar rolling sound. She smiled.


	4. What does she mean?

Lukell woke up to the sensation of a small finger jabbing into his cheek repeatedly, squinting a single eye open he saw Julaeka’s face inches from his. She was pouting and poking him in the face while trying to squirm out of his arms. “Morning, Jules...” he groaned. She glowered at him.

She had been picking up words here and there since she was one or so but she hadn’t been able to form full coherent sentences yet and she often preferred nonverbal communication. Lukell was surprised when she spat, “Wake up. I wanna play!” at him. He opened both eyes and looked at her with wonder, she continued to scowl.

“Okay, okay, I’ll get up.” She smiled confidently. He let her go and sat up and ruffled his hair while his surroundings came into focus. A faint tinge of green stretched across the woods around them, a small pile of charred wood was to his side. There was a lone blanket laying beyond the wood, _where did she go?_ Lukell looked to his other side, Julaeka was trying to climb a rock twice her size. He snorted, and much to her dismay picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. She pounded on his back a little and he patted hers, “Stop that, we’re just going to the river for some water. Okay?” He heard her groan but the pounding ceased, “Thanks!”

He followed the sound to the river and put her down next to him, they cupped the water in their hands and splashed it on their faces, drinking a little of it. Julaeka threw some water at him and giggled hysterically, all of which immediately ceased when he pushed a large wave in her direction, splashing up the ground where she stood. The water that missed the small body seeped into the ground, creating a quicksand-like patch of mud that pulled Julaeka into the ground slightly. She growled at him, “you're mean!”

“You started it,” he laughed. “Come on, let’s go back and play ‘pack up the stuff!’”

She pouted, “that's not a game.” She hoisted her up and threw her back over his shoulder.

“Everything’s a game if you think about it.” She disagreed with him in a series of punches on Lukell’s back. He shot his shoulder up, causing Julaeka to bounce into the air unexpectedly. “Stop that.” She groaned and relaxed as he walked back the way he came.

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

Lukell had packed up their small camp, he had stored everything back in his bag except for the blankets. He kept an eye on Julaeka while scraping long thin strands of wood from one of the small trees Maeri had cut down the day before. He showed an incredibly uninterested Julaeka how to weave the strips of wood into a rope-like tool and tied the blankets into a more manageable transportation form. He sat back and admired his craftsmanship, “Hey Jules,” she was too entranced by whatever she was drawing in the dirt to hear him. “Jules,” or maybe she did and just didn’t care. “Hey!” he threw a little pebble at and she turned to glare at him, “look at what I did!” She crossed her arms in annoyance, refusing to give him the satisfaction of being impressed. “Come on! That’s pretty good!” He threw his arm in the direction of the blankets, desperate for appreciation. She shook her head and looked away in defiance.

“Oi!” He heard Maeri approaching the siblings, “you do this?” She pointed her bloody axe at Lukell, he swallowed. His excitement had quickly melted to fear as he remembered the potential danger he and Julaeka were in. He nodded shakily, “impressive!” She beamed at him and he felt his face mirroring her expression, the fear now entirely driven out by pride. “You’ve done this before?”

“Not quite,” he looked down sheepishly, “a friend of mine used to bring with him when he’d go hunting sometimes but he moved away after that big raid a couple of years ago.” He looked back up at her, “it’s been a while, you know?”

“Yeah.” Her smile hadn’t faded, “you’re full of surprises.” She walked over to Julaeka and complimented her artistry, Julaeka pointed to something and smiled up at her. Maeri nodded and responded sweetly, Lukell was impressed now. _I guess she really is good with kids._ She turned back to him, “are you ready to get a move on? We’re wasting daylight.”

“Where are we going?” Gesturing for her to lead the way as he hoisted up his bag.

“The shore, we’re going back home- _to my home_.” She attached the blankets to the strap that held up her axe and started walking. 

When Lukell went to pick Julaeka up she dodged his hands and shook her head at him, “walk!” She almost sounded offended. Lukell just nodded his surprised face and extended a hand, she shook her head again.

“Come on Jules! At least until we’re out of the woods.” She groaned and took his hand, they followed Maeri out of the woods. 

\--)--)--(--(--

Soon after they left the forest they found themselves in another one. Maeri looked around for a topic of discussion, she fiddled with her belt a little too. Her palm landed on the head of a squirrel and she looked at Lukell with pure excitement and joy in her eyes. “Lukell.” He looked at her, he almost seemed surprised by her usage of his name.

“What?”

“Do you have humor?” He looked quite confused, fueling her happiness.

“What do you mean?” He sounded so serious, she was astonished by her ability to hold in her laugh.

“Do you think things are funny?” He looked to the side awkwardly.

“If they’re funny?” She laughed at then one, the tension was killing her.

“Was that an answer or a question?” He looked away pensively like he was really mulling it over.

“I…” he turned back to her, “I don’t know.” They both stopped to laugh, Julaeka tugged Lukell forward and he fell over. They were in hysterics and she hadn’t even said the funny thing yet. Once they had gathered themselves again and returned to their travel he shifted his eyes to her, “Well did you ever have something humorous?”

She chuckled and returned his gaze, “yeah,” she patted a squirrel on the head, “I was only going to get one of these but-” she started laughing again, she struggled to force out her words, “but they were- they were-” She stopped and tried to slow her breaths before starting over. “A friend of mine asked me to get him a squirrel, but when I finally f-found one, it was- it was-” She doubled over, “they were fucking!” His eyes went wide and he doubled over himself while she fell to the ground and rolled around.

“WhAt!?” She managed a nod before focusing her energy on rolling around again.

“Best part!” She shouted up, “best part is they were so busy with each other that- that they didn’t even see me coming!” She threw a hand over her mouth, shocked with the realization of what she had just said. It was silent for half of a second before they howled at each other. Maeri caught a quick glimpse of Julaeka’s scowl of annoyance before her eyes squeezed shut as she clutched her stomach and rolled some more.

“Are you going to tell your friend?” Lukell choked out.

“No,” she stood and wiped her clothes down, she looked Lukell in the eyes as she turned her hip to her and gestured to the 'still attached' squirrels. “I’ll just give them to him like this.” She smirked briefly, it was quickly overrun by hysterics.

\--)--)--(--(--

They walked for a while longer, occasionally one of them would chuckle.

“What exactly is the plan?” Lukell asked Maeri as they approached the shore, his nerves suddenly roaring at him.

“Not sure!” She chirped as if it was nothing, Lukell thought he might keel over right there. She saw him starting to shut down and quickly went to comfort him. “Lukell, hey, you don’t have to worry.” She sounded so sure of herself, it helped him a little but he was still on the verge of death, “trust me. You’re mine now, they won’t dare take what’s mine.” Lukell’s heart felt like it stopped momentarily, _what does she mean ‘mine?’_ His thoughts started racing to the forefront of his mind, clawing at each other for attention.

“Are you sure?” It was the only question he managed to set free from his brain. 

“Yes, that is the plan. I will tell them I found you on my hunt and I decided to keep you,” she looked behind him, “both of you.”

“Okay.” He took a few deep breaths as they neared the shore, a couple of ships and a large group of Vikings engulfing his line of vision.


	5. Are you willing to share?

“Oi!” A large blonde man came barreling toward them, Lukell thought he looked surprisingly clean for a Viking. Not that Maeri was dirty or anything, but she certainly didn’t prioritize cleanliness and Lukell expected her to be one of the more virtuous Danes around. The blonde tackled Maeri, she teetered a little but stood her ground. 

“Aldarin! You bastard!” She pushed off him and punched him in the stomach, he keeled over and started laughing. “I was gone for a day! Why do you always hug me when I get back!?” She pushed him onto the ground but he just kept laughing.

“I wanted to see if I co-”

“You’re never going to be able to knock me over!” She kicked him and he howled, not in pain, in more laughter. Another shield-maiden had run up after him, her long brown framed her face in two braids. A couple more matched Maeri’s style but rather than be pulled back into a ponytail they hung down with her loose hair.

“It’s just part of the welcome party!” She laughed as her and Maeri grasped hands and pulled each other into a quick embrace. “I can’t believe you went without me! Aldarin said you needed alone tim-” She stopped suddenly, noticing the skinny and frightful Lukell and a toddler. “ _ Alone _ ?” She eyed Maeri. “Who are these?” She gestured to them.

“I  _ was _ planning on a lone trip,” she lied, “but while I was hunting I stumbled across these two in the woods.” She patted Lukell’s head, “this one was surprisingly resourceful,” she pointed to Julaeka, “and she’s entertaining. I decided to keep them.” The new Viking woman looked Lukell up and down.

“So are they  _ yours _ yours?” She took a step toward him as he inhaled a shaky breath, worried she could smell his fear. “This one,” she poked his chest, and turned to Maeri, “are you willing to share?” Her grin was was wicked, Lukell swallowed so hard he almost lost his breath. 

Maeri smirked back, “no.” She draped an arm over his shoulder, “sorry Alva,” her voice dropped to a cruelly erotic register, “he’s mine.” Lukell felt his face flush, he was sure it was redder than the blood clinging to Maeri’s axe. The two Vikings laughed hysterically.

“Fine, but if you manage to stumble across another cute one, remember you’re lonely best frie- Ow!” She glared at Aldarin for kicking her leg as he finally rose from the ground. “You ass.”

“Speaking of best friends, Nidho happens to be mine and he is hopelessly entranced by you. You break his heart and I’ll ensure you don’t get to Valhalla.”

“Ugh, Aldarin, do you know what a _ joke _ is?” Alva groaned at him and Maeri laughed. 

She jiggled the squirrels on her hip, “look what I got you.”

“Thank y- wait- are they-” Alva burst out laughing as Maeri tossed the animals at the horrified boy.

“Just be glad you got two for the price of one,” she smirked at him, “it’s a bargain.” Alva was in hysterics, one hand clutching her stomach while the other pointed at Aldarin. Even Lukell was chuckling, an astonishing feat considering his fear. Maeri held Alva’s shoulder and tried to hold her still, “I also got you a rabbit, your welcome.” Alva nodded, her laughter only dying down slightly.

“Alright, alright,” Alva wiped her eyes and stood up straight, she faced Maeri. “You’re going to have to keep an eye on him, you know how the rest can be.”

“Yeah,” she shrugged, “I might need your guys' support if someone goes for them.” She narrowed her eyes, her tone shifting to a more serious one, clashing with her normally light-hearted nature. “They are mine.”

“We’ve got you.” Alva’s tone mimicked hers, Aldarin nodded. “Let’s go, the ship is almost ready. We’re setting off soon.” Maeri nodded and took Lukell’s hand, Lukell picked Julaeka up. She squirmed a little but when he glared at her she immediately stopped. 

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

The walk to the rest of the group was not long and it went by far too fast for Lukell’s liking. He was gripping Maeri’s hand with a strength he had never used before. He worried he was hurting her but before he could ask she gave him a comforting squeeze, assuring him she didn’t mind. When they arrived she avoided introducing him while she was greeted by her peers, instead she passed him and Julaeka off to Alva who quickly led them away from the chaos and over to a pile of supplies and a man. 

He was tapping sticks against a rock when they approached. She scooped up a pebble and threw it at him, “Oi, dumbass, start a fire.”

“Huh?” He looked up, his eyes widened when he saw the newcomers, “who ar-”

“Maeri found them, they’re hers, not mine.” He sighed.

“I was worried, he’s even got the only-father thing an-” She cut him off with a sharp kiss.

“You’re mine and I am yours.” He sighed again, this one heavily saturated with admiration. “Now. Fire.” She pointed to a darkened patch on the ground. “Maeri was busy this morning, she got you and Aldarin a pair of squirrels” she laughed, much to the man’s confusion, and turned to Lukell, “we have to cook before we set sail.” He nodded and sat on the ground, clutching Julaeka to his chest. 

It was quiet for a moment before Lukell surprised the Viking pair with his first words in their presence. “I’m not an only-father by the way,” he kept his eyes on the budding flame. He knew it would be best if he got to know these people, he couldn’t escape them and they’d be more likely to have his back if they liked him. “I’m not a father at all, she’s my sister.” He looked up at Alva while he introduced himself, “I’m Lukell, this is Julaeka. To my understanding, you’re Alva,” he turned to the man, “you’re Nitho?”

“Close,  _ Nidho _ ,” he chuckled in response.

“Very observative,” Alva sat back and crossed her arms, “Maeri said you were resourceful, what gave her that impression?” Lukell felt like he was being interrogated but he didn’t feel scrutinized, it just seemed like she was concerned for her friend.

“When she found us, we had been camping,” he nodded down to Julaeka, “I had skinned a tree and weaved rope to tie together our blankets.” He looked to the crowd and searched for her to no avail, “Maeri has the blankets.” He explained. She nodded slowly.

“Alright.” Once the fire had begun she stood, “I’m going to go get her, we can’t exactly cook without the meat.” She laughed at her own joke and strolled off. 

\--)--)--(--(--

Maeri felt a light tug on her arm, she followed it out of the crowd. Their attention already focused on something new, Aldarin’s horny meal. She found herself on the outskirts of the gathering, standing beside Alva. “What’s up?” She asked.

“Nothing, we just need to cook those before we board.” She pointed to the rabbits at her waist. 

“Oh yeah,” Maeri chuckled, “would you mind finding Aldarin while I start these? I doubt he’ll want to eat those squirrels’ raw.” Alva laughed at the thought as she pushed her way back into the mass. 

Maeri briskly walked the direction Alva had come, she paused momentarily as she neared and heard laughter. “No way man! That is not real!!” Nidho’s disbelief was quickly subdued with a series of slight variations of “Really! I saw it!” She continued and stood before the boys.

“What’s so funny?” She chirped, sitting beside Lukell. 

“Lukell was just telling me about Bad Luck Bede.” Nidho wiped his eyes.

“Who’s that?” She looked sideways at Lukell and he chuckled, shaking his head as he looked down.

He turned his eyes to her, “just a guy with really bad luck.” Nidho laughed hysterically, Maeri’s brows furrowed in confusion. “Let me explain-”

“Tell her about the well!” Nidho shouted, his laugh not remotely diminishing, “no! No! Tell her about the whore and the Turkey Egg!” Maeri’s confusion grew immensely as Nidho bellowed at whatever he had just referenced. She looked back to Lukell, pleading with her eyes.

He lifted his hand to her shoulder, “I’ll tell you all of it.”


	6. Why is he affecting me like this?

“So,” Maeri started to explain the plan, wiping the last crumbs of laughter from her eyes, “we’re going to take the back of the boat, you might be able to blend in, but,” she gestured to Julaeka, “she will not.” She took a bite of some rabbit while Nidho and Alva started wrapping up for the boat, she offered some to Lukell but he shook his head.

“What do you suggest?” Her teeth pressed into her bottom lip as she flipped through her thoughts, she looked up when Lukell interrupted her search. He tugged at one of the blankets on her shoulder, “Can I have this back?” 

She chuckled and nodded, “sure?” He gently moved Julaeka from his lap to beside him. To slip the blanket from her backstrap he leaned forward and cautiously reached behind her with both hands. Almost like a hug, he held her with a couple of inches of air as cushioning between them. She noticed his eyes explore her torso, lingering on certain areas before quickly flicking to different ones. He started to sit back, cradling the blanket in his arms, his eyes only moving to a different part of her top. She smiled confidently, she was seconds from calling him out and drinking his sweet humiliation when her smile faltered into a blush. Her eyes had paused just above his chin when she noticed his tongue sliding back into his mouth, leaving a glossy finish on his upper lip. A couple of teeth traded places with his tongue, pinning his bottom lip down as if he were restraining it. As she started collecting air she watched his lips part slightly, she heard him sharply exhale, coughing as he shook his head.

He spoke remarkably calmly, “you seem like you’re good with fabric?” She nodded slowly, stunned silent by the combination of his contradictory behavior and tone. His smile was warm, she felt the heat in her cheeks.  _ Why is he affecting me like this? _ Her thoughts were frantic,  _ I’m usually unfazed by all the come-ons! This is nothing compared to those… _ “would you be able to fashion this into a jacket/wrap-around kind of thing?”

“Y-yeah,” she choked. 

He looked concerned, “are you okay?”

She felt something calm as he laid a hand on her shoulder, like a wave from the ocean beside them washing over her, dousing her in comfort. “Yeah, sorry, I just had some rabbit stuck in my throat.”

“Don’t apologize,” he lightly squeezed her shoulder before pulling away to lift Julaeka into his lap, he started bouncing her on his knees. “Hey Jules, I need you to try and waste all your energy, okay? You’re not allowed to sleep until we’re on the boat either.” He put her back on the ground but quickly reached her again, holding her in place. “Also you have to stay here, no running around.” She pouted and crossed her arms, “I’m sorry Jules, people can’t see you!” He looked around as if an answer might be hiding in his surroundings, he shrugged lightly. “Just jump in place?” She scoffed and started hopping in place at his side.

Maeri hadn’t realized she was smiling while she watched Lukell help Julaeka get tired until Alva pointed it out with a sharp jab to her nose, “Are you sure he has a dick?” She whispered, a smile bleeding into her voice, “I think he might be a Volva.”

Maeri shook her head and looked at Alva quizzically, her tone slightly dazed, “huh?”

Alva laughed, her signature cackle drawing attention from the rest of the friends around the slowly dying fire. She waved them off and whispered to Maeri again, “he certainly seems to have enchanted you.” She smirked as Maeri drove a light punch into her side.

“Stop,” Alva’s laugh started to whir again, Maeri shrugged, “I suppose he has piqued my interest.” Her friend barked a quick laugh, waving off the rest once more. “But,” Maeri reasoned, “I am far from enchanted.” 

Alva snorted, “sure.”

“Hey!” She shoved her, “Leave me be!” She gestured to Nidho and lowered her voice again, “you’ve got someone let me find mine.”

She shook her head, chuckling, “fine. Good luck!” She stood and returned to her spot beside a very confused Nidho who clearly saw Maeri’s reference to him. She chuckled to herself.

“Hey, what was that about?” Lukell seemed closer than before.

“Just Alva being Alva.” She smiled.

“She seems fun,” Maeri nodded.

She sat and pondered for a moment, “I feel as though you are being surprisingly agreeable with,” she gestured to their surroundings, “all of this.”

He shrugged, “I don’t think you mean us any harm.”

“Sure but, still,” she tilted her head to the side a little, “I just tore you from your home and now I’m putting you on a ship full of dangerous people you’ve never met and you don’t even know where the ship is going!” He shrugged again, “you’re not worried?!”

“Of course I am!” She looked incredibly confused, “of course I’m worried! I’m terrified. But I know it’s probably the best possible option.” She sat back, dawning a more understanding expression, “We don’t really have much back in that village, my closest friend fled, our parents are gone. Staying there...” He shook his head, “we’re just sitting ducks. This is a risk but… it’s a risk I think we need to take.”

“Well, thank you for trusting me.” 

He chuckled, “let's not jump to conclusions.”

Maeri crossed her arms and pouted at him, “you don’t trust me?”

He laughed and slowly shook his head, “I thought I just said not to jump to conclusions?” He smiled at her, that warmth stretching to heart once more. “Look, I believe you have our best interests at heart, but I still hardly know you. I will follow you until I see reason not to and my trust in you will grow as you continue to stoke it, but it is something that must grow.” His smile grew lopsided, “I will admit it’s growing faster than I expected...” he trailed off as his eyes sank into hers. He almost seemed to be losing thoughts before he quickly turned his face to the embers. She watched from the side as the orange danced in his blue eyes, having yet to tear her own eyes away.

\--)--)--(--(--

Lukell settled in the back of the boat after being herded on board, hidden in the midst of the friend group. Maeri had fashioned the blanket around him, it was a perfect cover. Julaeka’s lump looked like a large belly, helping to blend him in with the larger Vikings he was hiding from. Julaeka was well exhausted, she started to doze off as soon as the ship started off into the sea. Maeri sat to his left him. Aldarin sat on her other side but the aisle between them added a distance Aldarin seemed to sulk at. Alva and Nidho sat on the bench in front of Maeri, her head sitting on his shoulders. They seemed to be gone for a while, the longship was filled with small chatter from all of its passengers. Lukell realized he was tired too, the sun had set, the hum of voices was lulling his mind, his eyes were closing. 

He felt his head fall lightly on a shoulder plate, the cold metal causing a shiver down his spine. He was too exhausted to move away from the hard, chilling surface. He felt a hand in his hair, softly pushing the side of his head up. His form sulked at the loss of support as the hand drifted from his locks, his head fell forward along with some of his body, barely conscious of the small body in his lap -- barely conscious at all. He heard the sound of something heavy tapping the floor, similar sounds followed as someone near him placed several things on the wood beneath his feet. A hand returned to his head as the sounds stopped, now at his right cheek.  It was soft overall but small, rough imperfections were laced across the palm. He felt a variety of scars against his cheek, a particularly long one stretching a line parallel to the line of its fingers. His head was pulled up and to the side, his other cheek soon colliding with skin, warm and less scared than what had graced the other side of his face. The hand on his cheek shifted to his for a quick scratch, pulling a sigh from his lips, before falling from his face to some abyss he couldn’t feel. Before he could protest the loss a warm weight lightly fell upon his head, anchoring him to its shoulder. He lost the wish to complain, slowly realizing what he was leaning on as his brain shut down.


	7. So you’ve hardly traveled?

Lukell awoke with the bright sun blinding his briefly opened eyes. He groaned and rubbed his eyes, yawning before attempting to look around again. He felt something pinning his head down when he tried to stretch. He thought for a moment, remembering a muddy series of sensations in the dark. Something cold, something soft, a scar, a weight… His eyes widened slightly as he connected the dots. He lightly lifted the weight atop his head with his hand, the soft silky yet knotted feeling of hair against his palm confirming his suspicions. He straightened his posture and turned to see Maeri’s head laying on his hand. He absentmindedly sighed in adoration, momentarily forgetting the world around him as he gently laid her head on his shoulder. He looked up to see Alva clamping a hand over Nidho’s mouth, a wicked smirk covering her own.

“You slept well.” She teased, Lukell chuckled, the morning hoarseness tainting the sound.

“Surprisingly well, wasn’t sure what I was expecting though.” She cocked an eyebrow, “I’ve never been on a ship before.”

Alva gasped, removing her hand from Nidho to cover her surprise. Nidho used his newfound freedom to question him, “are you serious!?” Lukell nodded, “how!? How do you do r-” Alva slammed her palm into the back of his head.

“Shush!” She hissed at him, “did you forget we’re trying to blend him in?”

He blushed and looked away, she had clearly hit the nail on the head. “Sorry...”

Alva shook her head in disapproval, “so you’ve hardly traveled?” She thought for a moment, “you’re from the village we raided?”

“Yeah, we-” He stopped, his mouth draining any moisture as he watched a knowing smirk lift her lips. Her eyes flickered with confidence and pride, she was clearly clever. Lukell imagined it might be her specialty, that she might be renowned for her ability to hunt down fleeing secrets and thrust them into the light -- although she seemed smarter than that. As Lukell’s mind raced in the long pause he came to the conclusion that she was intelligent enough to dig up the truth and wise enough to bury it elsewhere.

“You okay, man?” Nidho interrupted his analysis, he seemed nice but Lukell decided he wasn’t too observative, he would store that for later. 

“He’s fine.” Alva patted Nidho’s shoulder, “he’s new to all this you know? It can catch one’s tongue,” she looked at Lukell through the corners of her eyes. “Speaking of  _ caught tongues _ ,” she turned to Lukell, “have you taken hers?” She winked as Lukell flushed and coughed lightly.

“No. I am extremely in debt to her for being so kind to us.”

She scoffed, “So you’re just following her because she’s nice?” 

“I- She’s- It’s a reason.” He settled on his stance. Standing his ground, knowing he couldn’t lie but unsure of what he was even lying about. 

“Well, what’s the other reason?” Alva leaned forward, pressing him further.

“I-” He was abruptly cut off by a hand on his mouth, he felt a weight lift from his shoulder.

“Don’t answer her,” Maeri rasped. She coughed and cleared her throat before continuing. “She only asks so many questions because she’s incapable of reading people.” 

Alva shoved her, “Hey! I can read people!”

“Sure...” her skeptics clearly sidetracked Alva, Lukell silently thanked her. “Either that or you do it to balance your idiotic other half.” She and Lukell laughed, while she had moved her head her body was still pressed into his side. He could feel her laugh shaking her body against his, while his laugh began to fade a smile started to grow in its place.

“At least I have another half,” Alva snapped, they both laughed but Maeri’s was bitter and short. Lukell didn’t laugh, he had a sneaking suspicion it might have been a soft spot for Maeri and frankly he hadn’t found it all that funny.

“Babe, that’s the best you could come up with?” Alva slapped him again. He realized they had slipped into a different language, Lukell was surprised at his understanding.

“What do you mean??”

“A better comeback would’ve been about him,” Aldarin joined in, jabbing a finger past Maeri toward Lukell, he gulped. “She came after Nidho after all, attacking her is not a fair trade.”

“You and your _ fair trades _ . All you ever talk about is  _ fair trades _ .” Alva scoffed at him and waved him off. 

“It’s important!” He threw his hand up in exasperation, “It’s an eye for an eye, and eye for a nose is not the same thing!”

“Well she went for my heart,” she held Nidho’s hand to her chest, “I went for hers.”

“No, she went for who holds your heart. You-”

“I went for the lack thereof.” Aldarin stopped, unable to find a way to reason against her. 

Maeri had quieted down during the interaction, Lukell had been too wrapped up in the argument to notice and was filled with guilt immediately. He placed his palm against her back, his thumb rubbing a soft circle into the fabric. He could feel her tension rippling with each breath, she did not want to show her reaction. Lukell imagined she could sidestep it herself but he chose to do what he could to help the woman who might be saving his life, his sister’s life. The silence was growing dangerously long, he couldn’t risk letting it continue. He did not know these people well enough to trust them with the opportunity to start or continue the conversation. “So,” he sat up, careful to keep his arm and its position hidden behind her, “do you guys all live in the same village?” 

They all stared at him, eyes wide, even Maeri turned her head, surprise replacing her blank expression. “You speak our tongue?” Even Alva, who Lukell would imagine usually spoke very knowingly, let shock seep into her tone.

He nodded slowly, “I suppose I do. It must be one of the languages my father taught me, he was a trader, he traveled frequently.” He shrugged, “We should probably use it more often, I may not know as many words but we will path out less.” 

Confusion crossed their faces before Maeri laughed, “ _ stand _ ,” she corrected.

“Oops.”

“We should switch.” Nidho agreed, “I hardly know your speak.”

“Okay,” Alva added quietly, “but we have to be quieter when we talk then. More will understand what w-”

“Understand what?” A blonde man sitting in front of Alva had turned, his head too close to her ear. She shuddered and leaned away from his breath. His features were strikingly resembling those of Aldarin. Lukell glanced at the man to Maeri’s left and back to the man in front of him, they looked the same. 

“Nothing, Felaks.” Maeri remained calm. 

“Are you sure?” He taunted, “it wouldn’t have anything to do with our new passenger.” He locked eyes with Lukell. To his surprise, he felt territorial. He didn’t cower, instead, he puffed his chest. “We lost three in the raid but there are only two empty seats on the ship.” He was calculated, “you thought I wouldn’t notice your cluster getting even closer.”

“What do you want?” Alva spoke through her teeth, clearly uncomfortable with his closeness. As if he sensed it he leaned closer, turning to Maeri in the process.

“So you have stolen a boy and taken him as your slave?” He theorized, taunting further. “but he has no collar...”

“He will when we return, he is mine.” She squared her shoulders, staring him down as Alva shifted further. She was halfway off the bench, he followed her absently, his eyes still holding Maeri’s.

“Stop it,” Nidho hissed, yanking Felaks shoulders away from Alva. “Cloji would be mad if you went for another woman.”

“So?” He smirked, “she knows I like dark hair.” His fingers rolled a strand of Alva’s hair, his voice was husky. Nidho snarled.

“Felaks,” Aldarin shoved the man, “stop teasing my friends. You’re making them uncomfortable.” Felaks barked out a laugh.

“Sorry,” he leaned back. “I meant no harm, just having fun.” He winked at Alva before turning back.

Nidho wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her close. “We will be home soon, only a few more days.” He kissed her forehead, “Njord is smiling on us, the winds are favorable, we will be home sooner than usual.” 


	8. Do I have a choice?

Lukell was astonished by the speed at which they traveled, what  _ was _ Odin? Some kind of motor engine that won’t exist for ten centuries!? How does it smile!?! Lukell sat, pondering his entire existence and reasoning with his wavering reflection in the water beside him. Just moments ago Maeri had told him they were nearing land. Unfortunately, Lukell could not look up to confirm this as his mind spiraled and his stomach swirled with a short bout of sea-sickness. He assumed she wouldn’t lie to him.  _ What did Felaks mean  _ slave _? _ He thought,  _ what have I gotten Julaeka and I stuck in?? _

Julaeka had been incredibly good during the trip, it lasted 4 nights and she had remained relatively still the whole time. Lukell was worried but every time he snuck her some rabbit she would look up, smile, and take the meat. He owed her big time for this patience. 

The blue of the water began to lighten, muddy sand slowly becoming visible beneath it. There were a couple of loud splashes, the boat began moving faster. An abrupt stop nearly threw Lukell into Nidho’s back, his nausea kicking up his throat. A hand on his shoulder helped him focus, swallowing hard as he returned to this world. His eyes turned briefly to Maeri, she wore a warm and kind smile. The smile didn’t falter as she took the rope he had fashioned in the woods before in her hands and she tied it around his neck. It almost melded into something sinful, a wicked smirk as she momentarily tightened the rope, eliciting a quick, shocked gasp from his chest as she closed his airway. She loosened it again so that it didn’t hurt him but he couldn’t pull it over his head, a low chuckle forming a gorgeous score for the scene. A sigh creating a painful tension as he waited for the music to continue. He was rewarded for his brief patience with an explosion of melody in his mind as she turned, walked away from him, her ass swinging slightly in beat with each step.

The music halted abruptly as he was yanked forward by his neck, Alva laughed maniacally jogging up to Maeri’s side to whisper something undoubtedly quick-witted and a little backhanded. Lukell followed her with an arm awkwardly supporting Julaeka. He didn’t speak, listening to Maeri as she joked with several other Vikings, occasionally explaining her new treasure from the raid. They arrived in a large hall filled with people, Maeri, Alva, Nidho stopped at a table but Felaks and Aldarin continued. They stood beside a tall lean man, hair as blonde as theirs, sitting in a larger chair.

“What have you found on your recent raid?” The man’s voice seemed to echo over the sudden silence of the small crowd.

“Jarl Hagresta,” one of the men Lukell remembered from the boat stood to address the man in the chair. “We were successful in finding a small village and one of their ‘churches.’” He exaggerated quotation marks and the room erupted in a short fit of laughter. “In the temple we found gold candlesticks and  _ those things _ ,” he gestured to his table; a pile of golden candlesticks and two gem-encrusted crosses lay haphazardly at its end. “We found some silver in the village but it was less bountiful.”

The Earl nodded, “and that is all?” 

Maeri quickly stood hastily, Aldarin looked to the side awkwardly, Felaks smirked. “I have also taken a slave.” 

The Earl turned to her, “why?”

“I believe he will be of use to me.” 

The Earl waved his hand dismissively, “well what of your findings will you donate to us?” He gestured to the boys by his side as he spoke. They seemed to stand at the exact same height and they’re faces appeared equivalent, they shared the same shade of green in their eyes, the same bridge of their noses. Although, there were variations in how they wore their features. While they shared the same pink lips, its corners were upturned on Felaks and pursed on Aldarin, his brows far more furrowed as well. Their matching birchwood blonde was worn in great disparity as if it was their lone discerning factor. While Aldarin let his hair completely lose, Felaks’ was in five french braids. 

“You can have the  _ things _ . They are gold and jeweled, the rest is just gold.”

Felaks turned his head to see the Earl’s reaction, Lukell noticed a slightly short ponytail sprouting from where the braids met on the back of his head. “That is fine.” Felak’s raised an eyebrow but questioned nothing, his expression was blank as he quickly turning his gaze back to the room. “I’m sure you are hungry?” The room seemed to growl itself, a thin smile seemed to strain across his face. “Then eat.” He beckoned a few young people in, they placed bowls and platters of meats, bread, and soups. 

Maeri and Nidho dug in first, only pausing when they noticed Alva sniffing some of the meat and returning it to its place. She looked at them with a crinkled nose, “don’t eat the goat.” They nodded and continued tearing into the bread. Lukell reached for some as well, his stomach rumbling. Simultaneously Maeri slapped his hand and Julaeka pounded against his chest. 

“Don’t eat this, we will leave soon and you can eat at my home.” She spoke quietly, it seemed as though she had directed the second half to his chest. 

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

After sitting for what seemed like forever in a starving agony Maeri finally stood and turned to him. “ _ Slave _ ,” she smirked at him, “let us leave.” He stood and followed as she led him along, Alva reached over the table to slap her ass and wink at her. Lukell swallowed before his neck was tugged toward Maeri as she continued with a laugh. They left the hall and trudged through some mud, pigs squealing as they passed. They approached a horse tethered to a tall post, “do you ride?” She patted the horse’s dark bay neck, its muscles rippling as it brayed lightly and turned its muzzle to her cheek. 

Lukell nodded, “It has been a long time though, I-”

“Doesn’t matter!” She chirped, climbing onto the horse’s bareback. “I was just curious.” She shimmied up closer to its withers, petting the area behind her. Lukell realized what she meant and attempted to hoist himself up, immediately stopping with a horrified expression. “What’s wrong?” 

She looked genuinely worried for him, he shook his head. “Nothing, no, I’m fine. I almost dropped Jules.” He stroked the small form attached to his chest through the blanket concealing her. 

Maeri hummed in thought briefly, looked away only to quickly return her eyes to him. She leaned over slightly, keeping her legs firmly tightened around her horse. She pulled the tie keeping the blanket around him. In shock, he managed to catch the blanket just in time, glaring at her. “Here, pass her to me while you get on.” He hesitated. 

Did he trust her enough to  _ give _ her his sister? Did he have a choice? He sighed and cradled the blanket momentarily, careful to keep Julaeka hidden, he slowly handed her to Maeri. She delicately lifted Julaeka and sat her on the horse’s neck in front of her. 

As soon as Lukell sat behind her, she turned to half face him. “I would pass her back to you but I believe it will be best if you hold onto me,” she looked him up and down, “I’d hate to crush your sweet sister in our embrace.” Lukell groaned and pressed his chest into her back; there was minimal space and he knew he had to hold her, he could fall off otherwise…  _ right?  _ He decided he had no choice. He reached around her waist, pulling Julaeka against her stomach while Maeri gripped the horse’s mane. Maeri chuckled before kicking against the horse’s sides and directing it down a dirt road parallel to a river. 

The ride was short enough, they approached a farmhouse, a small field to its left and a pen of goats and pigs to its right. She tapped Lukell’s arm lightly, he let go of her. She whispered something to Julaeka who’s barely visible hands suddenly tightened her hold on the black mane of the horse. She slid off gracefully and held her hand out to Lukell, he laughed and shook his head, sliding off less gracefully but at least he maintained his pride. He pulled Julaeka from the horse as Maeri tied it to a post. After a questioning look to Maeri and a nod of approval, he removed the blanket from Julaeka and placed her on the ground. She teetered as she was revealed to the world after days of being hidden. She fell on her butt, the teenagers laughed but quickly stopped when the toddler growled and pouted, pushing herself up from the ground. 

“This way,” Maeri took his hand and he took his dizzy sister’s as he let her lead them into her farmhouse. When they entered a huge man ran towards them, bigger than any of the other Vikings he had seen. He barrelled at them, Lukell quickly sidestepped, pulling Julaeka with him as the man tackled Maeri in a bear hug. “Father! Every time!?” 

“Darling, it was part of the deal.”He pulled away and held her shoulders, “I only agreed to stay behind and watch the farm if I got to pamper you when you return.” She groaned with a smile, laughing as he hugged her again. Then he opened his eyes, noticing the new boy and child in his home. He pulled away keeping his eyes on Lukell, his joy melting to apprehension. “Who is this?”

Maeri giggled, “this is Lukell.” She turned the man’s head to face hers, “I took him from a village we raided. He is mine now.” She gestured to Lukell’s feet, “this is Julaeka, his baby sister.”

“Are you sure he’s safe?” Her father lifted a sword by its blade, prodding Lukell with its handle. 

“Yesssssss,” she shoved the man playfully, “May I keep them in my room?” 

He looked pensive, then he shrugged, “fine. But I forbid any humping.”

Maeri slapped her forehead with force, “Father!” 

He laughed but stood his ground, “whaaat? I do not know him well enough to support his child. No risks.”

“I wasn’t planning on it!” She whined, Lukell was impressed by his ability to fluster her so. 

“You know I trust you.” He crossed his arms, “but sometimes I worry Alva rubs off on you! Considering that girl's family history I’m surprised she has yet to pop out a babe with that man of hers.” 

Maeri laughed, “they  _ have _ been together for a long time. But, I guess,” she paused, her father’s eyes narrowed, “I don’t know. She has mentioned a tactic they use to avoid-”

“Stop!” He bellowed, rushing to cover her mouth as it overflowed with laughs, “I don’t want to hear about you kids and your antics!” He threw his hands up and turned to Lukell, a smile as kind as Maeri’s. “Are you tired from your journey?”

Lukell shook his head, “we have been doing nothing but sitting still for days, we are very hungry and we -- especially Jules -- have much energy to waste before we will tire.” Much to Lukell’s gratitude, Maeri’s father laughed.

“Alright, I have some bread and soup you can eat.” He ruffled Lukell’s hair as he walked to a cupboard, turning momentarily to speak, “she can jump I suppose?” He turned back to his preparations, “to spend her energy. I doubt you want her running outside in the night in this new land with people you hardly know.” Lukell hummed in agreement and sat at the table as Maeri gestured for them to join her. The man handed them each a chunk of bread soon followed by two bowls of soup. He sat beside his daughter, in front of Lukell, “I hope you find us hospitable. If my daughter likes you I will tolerate you, but I think you will find it in your best interest to have me like you as well.”

“Father!” He waved her off, taking a bite of some bread of his own.


	9. Are you sure?

Lukell looked into his cup as he swirled its contents, the ale sloshing against its sides. Maeri had been detailing her trip to her father, when she arrived at his village she paused. Lukell, who had been watching their conversation, quickly shifted his focus to his cup, unsure of what story she would choose to tell the man. “Boy.” Lukell looked up from the ale, daring to peer into the eyes of the half-giant across from him. 

“Yes?”

“My name is Tomin, I know your name you ought to know mine.” Lukell’s throat bobbed, Tomin must have picked up on his daughter’s reservation. “Some call me Tom, but that honor must be earned.” 

The boy nodded, “I understand, my parents used to call me Luka for short. It is right I reserve for few, well, more accurately noone.” He calmed, feeling as though he was handling himself well.

Tomin released a low, hoarse hum in thought, “you’re parents.” Lukell’s nerves itched again, “they… _were_?”

Lukell nodded again, a grim overtone shading his features as he spoke, “they are no longer.” The man looked past his shoulder at the toddler doing jumping jacks in place.

“When?”

“Two years ago, she was around one at the time.” 

His brows furrowed, “you’ve raised her alone since?” Lukell nodded. “She seems well-tempered, good job.”

“Thank you,” he smiled genuinely at the compliment, taking pride in his sister.

“A good parent,” Tomin mused, he shoved Maeri, “that’s a good sign!” She slammed her face into hands, shaking her head violently. 

She pressed her face against the table and groaned, “stopppp.” Tomin laughed heartily, patting her shoulder.

Lukell felt a tug on his tunic, he looked down to see Julaeka staring up at him. She yawned and looked at him pleadingly. He chuckled, “okay, okay.” 

He turned to Maeri, without a word she pointed to a door behind him. “You can put her in my bed,” she paused to think, “you can share it tonight.”

An eyebrow rose, pulling his head on a tilt. “Are you sure?”

“Mhm!” Her smile was sweet and giving, he found it impossible to turn down her offer.

“Alright,” he turned to Julaeka, hoisting her into his arms as he spoke, “let’s get you to bed.” She yawned again, stretching out her arms before laying them around his shoulders, leaning her head against him. 

He pushed his way into Maeri’s room. It was small, there was a bed beside the wall, a pile of fabrics and furs in the opposite corner. There were also some furs hung to dry along the wall, it was sparse otherwise. Lukell laid Julaeka onto the bed, she rolled away from him as she seemed to fall asleep instantly. He smiled as he turned to leave the small bedroom but he paused before opening the door.

“-re you sure?”

“Positive.” Maeri’s words were light as she tread softly, leading her father to speak similarly. They were just audible to Lukell as he froze to listen. “Alva said she has discovered some new information as well, she will come over tomorrow.”

Tomin cursed quietly, “those bastards.”

“Father,” Lukell could practically hear her laying a hand on his arm, “we will get mother back. They’ve been inactive, they must do something soon and then we can make a move.” 

Tomin shuddered, “you said he was away when it happened?” Lukell placed a nod from Maeri in the pause. “Good, if he had seen what they- if he was there they wouldn’t have spared him. And that poor babe, what they would do to her… by Vidar...” The man’s voice broke, he began to sob quietly as Maeri comforted him, the tears heavy in her voice as well. 

“He’ll be out soon, I don’t want him to worry.” She reasoned, Lukell heard Tomin stand and leave the farmhouse. He waited a moment before emerging from her room.

“Hey,” she smiled at him, eyes wet, not daring to speak. “You know what, I’m a bit tired myself.” He gestured behind him, “I think I’ll join Jules.” 

She nodded and waved, choking out a quick “goodnight,” before chugging ale. He returned to the bed, laying beside his sister. Thoughts racing until he was truly tired out, he fell asleep cradling her close.

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

Lukell was enjoying some bread when a small blonde child slightly shorter than Julaeka came barreling through the door. She was laughing as she held out her arms, “Maeri!!” Maeri scooped her up and hugged her in a twirl. 

Alva came running in behind her, pausing to catch her breath quickly. “Someone wanted to race and totally destroyed me!” She tickled the new toddler who screamed and laughed hysterically. The girl’s head snapped suddenly over Maeri’s shoulder, staring intently at Julaeka who was staring nervously back. The girl wore a huge smile and Maeri lowered her to the ground, she ran to Julaeka but Julaeka ran away, hiding under the table at Lukell’s feet.

“Hey!” The girl shouted, “come back!” She seemed to be having fun but Lukell could feel Julaeka trembling against his calves, he reached down to pat her head and turned to the girl.

“Who are you?” He playfully questioned her, booping her nose.

Her smile widened, “Rosik!” She pointed to the toddler at his feet, “who is she?”

“This is my sister, Julaeka.” He explained, “she gets scared sometimes.”

Rosik pouted, “tell her I’m not scary!” 

Lukell chuckled, “okay.” He patted Julaeka again, “hey, she is safe, okay? Luka approved.” Julaeka shook her head and Lukell nodded, slowly coaxing her from under the table. Once she was out Rosik hugged her, squeezing a squeak from Julaeka.

“What do you like to play?” The blonde giggled, Julaeka led her over to the pile of sticks she had been working with before they crashed the party.

Lukell turned to Alva and Maeri, both of which were smiling with an indescribable warmth in their eyes. “She’s one of mine,” Alva broke the silence with a cough. “She's the second youngest in my family.” Lukell nodded and watched the toddlers play. He hadn’t been paying enough attention to the rest of the world to notice Alva and Maeri whispering intently. When he faced them again he realized it wasn’t the playful whispering from before, Maeri looked angry. He walked toward them.

“What is it?” Alva looked at him, then back to Maeri, she juggled their gazes for a few moments until Maeri nodded and she sighed.

“I have some information about the Illting, our rival clan.”

Maeri faced him, “the ones who killed your parents and took my mother.” Lukell swallowed.


	10. Why am I so comfortable with her?

A symphony of giggles and clashing sticks formed a stark contrast to the conversation it scored. While Lukell occasionally looked to the play fighting toddlers, his mind was elsewhere -- half elsewhen. He hopped from remembering his past to trying to weigh the potential future outcomes, he struggled, knowing little of his enemies. He sat beside Tomin, had he not been so preoccupied he may have been more nervous to be so close to him. Alva and Maeri were across the old table. Lukell listened to Alva, his finger roughly tracing the table’s wrinkles, “One of their ships was seen going West, nearly our exact path.”

“And you're sure it was one of theirs?” Lukell was discovering Tomin to be a curious creature, a bear of sorts. While soft he could inspire fear, while sure of himself he could not resist questioning.

“Yes,” Alva confirmed with a nod, “I saw it myself this morning. But it complicates things, for several reasons.” Lukell’s finger circled a knot in the wood beneath it.

“Seems clear to me.” Tomin likely fell victim to his emotions as well, allowing them to paint his opinions. “They are idiotic and follow our footsteps because they are too wrapped up in their own antics to noticed the route had just been utilized.” 

Alva shook her head, tapping her pointer finger against the table thoughtfully, “no…” She sighed, “it is complicated. Unfortunately, these foes don’t share the stupidity of our Christian ones,” she turned to Lukell, “I mean no offense.”

Lukell shrugged, shaking his head lightly, “I never cared much for such beliefs, my parents rejected conforming to such rigid structures anyway.” He looked to the side as if he expected his mother to stand there and verify his words. He spoke a little more pensively, “I doubt we even qualify as Christian...” trailing off.

“Well, regardless of your beliefs, the Illting do use strategy.” 

Tomin rolled his eyes and Maeri slapped his arm in disapproval, “father. We have been rivals with these people for years. They have taken so much from us, from many of us,” she glanced at Lukell before returning to her father, “they are clearly somewhat intelligent. If not then what are we?” 

Tomin groaned and gestured to Alva, “continue.”

“I have reason to believe they have set sail to the East as well, I could not confirm this with my eyes, as they are east of us, but my sister,” she turned to Maeri, “you know Nori.” She nodded, Alva turned to Tomin and Lukell to explain, “she’s a traveler, she chose to journey east at the end of winter, she returned a few days ago. She said that she could not infiltrate Andskoti but she was able to find a messenger. She hid his body in the sea and discovered they planned to go East but throw us off by sending a ship West.”

“Hmmm,” Maeri reached over her shoulder to rub her back, “sounds a bit too convenient?”

Alva nodded, “I love my sister but she is more brawn than brains. I’m not sure what they’re plan is but they want to confuse us. We must be wary of their actions and expect an ulterior motive.”

Tomin sat back, “so you don’t think they are going East either?”

“Well, the fact that I’ve seen their West-bound ship seems to confirm the plot Nori discovered but...” She stroked her chin, “I think it’s too easy.”

“Agreed, but then you think they are actually going West and just sending more ships later?” Maeri’s brows furrowed, “Why would they plunder the route we have just taken?”

“Are East and West the only options?” Lukell finally joined in. They peered at him sideways.

“Yes.” Maeri answered, “unless they aren’t going by boat.”

“How long would it take them to travel here on land?” 

Their eyes widened, Alva responded, “a few weeks, three maybe.”

“They have attacked here before, no? Could they be coming here?” Maeri looked down, her eyebrows forming a crease as lips pressed together. Lukell felt bad, he knew this wasn’t what she would want to hea-

“Good.” Or maybe she did. “So we prepare. When they come in three weeks we will destroy them for good.”

Alva laid a hand on her best friends’ shoulder. “We will be ready.”

“Okay, we will prepare just in case.” Tomin leaned forward again, “but I still think they are going East. I think you give them too much credit.”

Alva waved him off, “we will tell Jarl Hagresta tomorrow?” They nodded and Alva stood and walked over to Rosik, lifted her from the floor and into her arms. “Sorry everyone,” she tickled the toddler in her arms, “especially you,” she faced the table again, “but we have to get back to our farm.”

Maeri stood and hugged her, “have fun.” They laughed and the sisters left. Within a few moments, Tomin had gone to bake some more bread, Julaeka had returned to her solo game with the sticks and Maeri was sitting in front of him at the table. She had crossed her palms on the table and rested her chin upon them, directing her eyes at him. He could see his own face plastered over the black and blue. She smiled but he frowned, when she mimicked his expression he chased hers and they laughed. She sat up, “so you don’t subscribe to Christian ways?” He shrugged, “what do you know of our ways?”

“Nothing really,” he squinted and tilted his head to the side, “eh, I am assuming your God is named Njord?” 

She laughed, covering her mouth quickly. While her smile itself was not visible her eyes told him it remained. “He is one of our gods.” He hummed thoughtfully before looking at her to continue. “We have many, Odin is their king. He resides in Valhalla. Njord is the god of the seas.”

“Oh… that makes sense.” She chuckled at his ignorance, he was eager to learn more. “I am curious, your pantheon sounds very interesting. Who are your other gods?”

“It is more fun than yours,” she laughed, “we once had a priest, he said Christians are always ashamed and apologizing for their signs,” Lukell burst into laughter, she tried desperately to explain between laughs of her own, “that sounds so miserable!”

“Well,” he took a deep breath, “that’s not quite the gist but it’s close enough. Anyway, tell me more.”

“Okay,” she groaned and rubbed her back over her shoulder. “So we have many gods but some are more…  _ frequently mentioned _ than others.” She spoke as if they were listening, careful to avoid offense. “Tyr is the god of war, Loki is the trickster god, Freyr is the god of peace and fertility, his sister, Freya, is the goddess of destiny and-”

“You have lady gods?” She looked at Lukell like he was insane.

“Of course. For every man there is a lady.” As Lukell mulled it over he realized how much that made sense.

“I should have expected as much,” he gestured up and down her, “you have lady soldiers.”

“Soldiers?” She cocked an eyebrow. “I am a shield-maiden,” she sounded angry, “I am just as capable as my-”

“Oh no!” He cut her off, realizing his mistake, “I don’t think you’re any less! We just don’t treat women as equal to men where I am from.” He shook his head, “I hate it, it made me worry for Julaeka.” He laid his hand on hers, “I am glad you and your people are more inclusive, it makes more sense than what my people do.” 

She smiled weakly, glancing to the side before returning to explanation, “We have a few goddesses, there is Idun, goddess of rejuvenation and Hel, she rules the underworld, she is the daughter of Loki. There are more but you are more likely to hear of them.”

He nodded, “so Valhalla, is that like-” he wanted to say heaven but she wouldn’t understand that “-is that where the good people go?” 

She looked quizzical again, “Odin is selective with who enters his hall, when you die you must be a good warrior. You can only go to Valhalla if you die in battle, otherwise you will go with Hel.”

“I see...” Lukell watched her giggle at his reaction, “whaaat?” She laughed harder, God she was gorgeous-  _ gods _ , he ought to get in the habit. Her ponytail was looser than it had been the days prior, strands of hairs framed her face. Her shoulders shook with each beautiful riff of noise dancing from her lips. Her lips were pink, plump, even when spread into a huge smile. He reached for her, catching her cheek in her hands. She stopped laughing, her smile shrunk but grew in a different way. Her head fell lightly against his palm.  _ Wow _ .

He shook his head, pulling his hand back and apologizing. She laughed awkwardly, looking away. “You know so little,” she teased, “there are many more gods, but I don’t wish to name them all right now.”

“Makes sense,” he noticed as she reached around to rub her back again. “Does your back hurt?”

She looked like a deer in torchlight, “no! I just- It’s- I’m fine!” He laughed and she pouted, “stop it!”

He stood, and walked around the table. She watched him with fierce worry in her eyes, as if he was insane. He sat beside her and faced her, the bench between his legs. He pushed her shoulder toward the table. “Turn.” He commanded gently, pushing her shoulder again. She raised an eyebrow at him and slowly turned her back to him. He rested his hands on either side of her neck, cautiously pressing circles into her back with his thumbs. He moved down her back, adding pressure against her muscles, focussing his thumbs on each knot he came across. He paused after a particular disentanglement, one she had punctuated with a small moan. 

They both froze, she quickly changed the subject, “uh I guess my back might be a little tight...” The blush was evident in her voice. He leaned forward, eager to catch the pink before it faded from her cheeks. He inhaled a whiff of her surprisingly flowery scent as he chuckled near the back of her head. 

“Is this because we stole your bed?”

She shrugged, “that might be part of it. It’s probably mostly due to the sea voyage.” He hummed in agreement, continuing to work her back. 

“You take the bed tonight.” 

She shook her head violently, “no! You have a child with you, she should have a bed.”

“It’s fine, she can sleep on my stomach,” he laughed. Maeri turned her head to look at him through the corners of her eyes. 

“Are you sure?”

He looked down sheepishly, “of course! This is your home, you deserve the comfort.”

She snorted, “I’m pretty sure that is the opposite of how hospitality works.”

He barked out a quick laugh, “I’ve never been the brightest.” 

She leaned back, forcing his hands to slide from her back to her sides. She laid against his chest and looked up at him, giggling wildly. “You are very bright,” she widened her eyes in feigned wonder, “and upside down!” He couldn’t help but chuckle, shaking his head as he placed his chin on her hair -- she had moved just in time to avoid it crushing her face. She sighed, he followed suit.  _ Why am I so comfortable with her? _ He had started to ponder that question as well as whether or not she was okay with his hands shifting to eradicate the awkward position his arms had been in. They skimmed over the wide ribbon of fabric she wrapped around her body, grazing a patch of free skin before settling against her stomach, a portion of one of his palms pressing against some of that skin. 

He was holding her.

Her fingers lightly traced a line along his arm, “Freya is also the goddess of love.”


	11. Are you and Maeri...?

Maeri and Alva stood before Earl Hagresta, they were next in line to speak with him. Nattfari sat beside him, they were not married yet. They claimed she was his advisor, a friend to replace his wife’s position since she had been stolen alongside Maeri’s mother. They were both very adamant about the lack of romance, insistent that her purpose by his side was solely to provide feminine influence on his decisions. Alva, who had a bit of a mean streak when it came to humor, pointed out the stupidity of this reasoning. In her words, ‘she has to be the least feminine woman I’ve ever seen! She has a man’s name, she does her hair like a man, and she’s flat as a man!’ That last bit was easier for her to criticize than Maeri, as it would be a bit hypocritical from her mouth. Maeri wanted to see the best in people and tried to be nice but she couldn’t disagree with Alva’s comedic, yet somehow logical claims. The woman was rather skinny for a Viking, her black hair and dark eyes accentuating her blank expression. The sides of her hair were shaved down, a thick stripe of hair ran down the top of her head into a short ponytail. The concept of her as an advisor, in general, was quite counter-intuitive, she rarely interjected with any semblance of an opinion. She kind of just sat there.

It was finally their turn; “Jarl Hangresta,” Maeri began, “we have reason to believe the Illting are approaching Heillstaðr.”

He cocked an eyebrow, “what reason is this?”

“Well,” Alva answered, “They have sent out word, even ships, in attempts to confuse us -- suggesting they are traveling East  _ and  _ West on different occasions. We think they have provided both options because they plan to use neither.”

“But we are here. Heillstaðr is the opposite of unprotected, it would be horribly unstrategic.”

“Yes, they must be planning some form of a sneak attack by land. We have about three weeks until they will arrive so w-”

“I’m sorry,” to Maeri and Alva’s shock, Nattfari broke her own silence, speaking for the first time during the few hours they had been there. “I don’t understand how you have jumped to this conclusion.” Alva started to restate her reasoning but she was cut off again. “So. You believe they are coming here simply because you have heard the news that they are going West and news that they are going East.”

“Well we know they are trying to confuse us, one of their messenger’s said they were sending a ship West so we wouldn’t know they were heading East so-”

“Surely it makes more sense for them to be doing that?” A few people in the room laughed, even the Earl released a small chuckle. 

“I’m afraid Nattfari has a point,” he sat forward in his chair, “do you have any more reason?”

“No, but it seems too easy!” The desperation in Alva’s voice was becoming prevalent.

The Earl laughed heartily, “your family is far too suspicious. You can never settle for reality, you always need to polish each grain of sand until it changes color.” He scoffed, “sand is blonde, even if you mix sand with dirt you will still have some flaxen grains in between the browns. That is just reality, there is no more to it.” He bit out the statement. Alva was silent.

“This is not just some dirt. It is  _real_.” Maeri stepped toward the Earl, the anger in her voice meshing with her desperation. “We cannot lose more to these people because we are unprepared.”

He snorted, ”you can tell people to be ready for a fight just in case but I refuse to donate resources to arming Heillstaðr for an attack we have one reason to expect.” He narrowed his eyes at Alva, “a very outlandish reason at that.” Maeri and Alva stood, the room was dead silent. Before they could argue further the Earl had called for the next people in line and they were shoved out of the way.

“Asshole.” Alva spat as they left the hall.

\--)-(----)-(--

Lukell was sitting on a fallen log, his eyes squeezed shut as Julaeka slapped her small hands against his face repeatedly, when he heard his name being called. He grabbed Julaeka’s wrist and opened his eyes, throwing a quick playful growl before looking to see who called him. Aldarin was approaching, slowly strolling up the dirt road and leaving a palomino horse in his wake. “Hey, what's up?” Lukell stood and patted Julaeka’s head before walking to meet the blonde halfway. 

“Oh nothing,” Aldarin scratched the bad of his head with a lopsided smile, “just wondering how you're adjusting.”

“Oh,” Lukell laughed lightly, “well it’s only been a couple of days but I think we’re faring well enough.” He returned the smile to Aldarin, “Maeri isn’t here right now if you were looking for her.”

Aldarin nodded, “yeah I know. I saw her in line to speak with my father.”

“Ah… so your father is the Jarl?” Aldarin nodded despondently, “do you know what they went to talk to him about?”

“Yeah, our rival clan has been tryi-”

“Oh,” Lukell braced his hands in an apologizing manner, “I know why I was just wondering if you did.”

“Oh.” The two paused before laughing at the misunderstanding.

“So you really came all this way to see how we’re doing?”

Aldarin reached up to grab his shoulder, Lukell was rather tall compared to his own kind, he was about average amongst the Vikings but he did have some height on Aldarin. He gave him a firm squeeze, “I wanted to talk to you as well.” A wondering smile spread across his face as he turned it to his free hand as it stretched out in a gesture to the unknown. “We know much about your people now, we know how you fight, how you farm, who you worship. Some of us,” he gestured to himself, “even know the tongues you speak.” He looked back at Lukell, “but I still have questions!” His expression grimmed, “but first… I must know… Are you and Maeri fucking?”

Lukell’s eyes widened, his mouth fell open to make room for a series of silent responses. Finally, he shook his head and managed a word, “no!”

“Well do you plan to be?” His lips were thin as if he was biting back his true reaction.

“Uh- I- We- She- Um-” Lukell shook his head violently as if some semblance of answer would tumble out. 

Aldarin laughed, his smile returning, “You seem like a nice enough man.” He patted his shoulder again, “so far I have no reason to oppose it so you have my support.”

Lukell blew out, “what?”

“Look, I will be honest with you. Maeri and I were once together,” Lukell’s brows furrowed as confusion pried his mouth open once again, “don’t worry we didn’t get far,” he chuckled. “We know now that we are better off as friends, I want her to be happy. I like you so far, I’m glad she stumbled across you.”

“Thank you,” his voice was cautious. 

“I just wish I could stumble across someone...” Lukell’s uncertainty quickly turned to sympathy as Aldarin's face fell, he laid his hand atop his.

“For every man there is a lady.” He smiled, the expression weakly mirrored on the face across from his. 

“Yeah,” his green eyes darted to the side before returning to Lukell’s a little brighter. “So, tell me about your people!” Aldarin slapped his back and turned them to walk back to the fallen log, “I dream of a world where we can live together! Tell me, do you think that’s possible?”

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

Aldarin had left after a particularly in-depth conversation about the similarities between the Scandinavian and French societies. Not long after Maeri rode up, she looked quite disappointed. He hoisted Julaeka onto his shoulders, she waved her arms around and made a raspberry noise. “Hold on!” He called, relinquishing any hold he had on her before shaking around. She screamed, giggling wildly as she wrapped her arms around his forehead to avoid flying off of him. He chuckled, his hands strapping her knees in place as he moved toward Maeri, looking toward her just in time to catch a small smile grace her face. She was about to dismount her mare when he arrived by her side. “Hey, how’d it go?”

She frowned, “not quite as I had hoped.” Julaeka leaned over Lukell to pat Maeri’s knee. Her frown flipped, she slid off of the horse and tethered it up. “How has my father been?”

“We haven’t seen much of him. He left to collect grain in the morning when he returned he just went inside. We’ve been outside all day.”

She nodded, “how was Aldarin?”

“Good, he asked a lot of questions.”

“Hmm, interesting,” she patted her horse’s neck and started toward the farmhouse. “He’s usually more shy,” she beckoned Lukell to follow, “I guess you have an effect on people.” He followed, looking down to hide a slight blush.

“Thanks...” They went into the house, to find Tomin preparing some dough. 

“Do mind if she spends some alone time with my dad?” Maeri pulled Julaeka from her shoulders and tickled her, setting her on the floor. 

Lukell cocked an eyebrow, “um...”

“Trust me, he may seem big and scary but he’s got a huge soft spot for kids.”

“I can see that,” Lukell chuckled, Maeri’s warm smile coaxing his trust to the forefront of his mind. “Sure, but why would she need to?”

“I want to show you something.” She took Julaeka’s hand and lead her to Tomin’s baking station.


	12. Did he cause this?

Her hands were soft but scarred, small rough patches grazing his palm as she slid her hand in his. She had rushed from her father’s side with a huff and a slight pink coloring her cheeks. Lukell suddenly realized he had no idea what she was about to do.  _ Is she trying to seduce me? Is she going to kill me? _ She pulled him out of the house with her and sprinted to the bank of the wide river on the other side of the road. He managed to break free of her grip, yanking her eyes toward him with the lack of contact. “Where are you taking me?”

“I want to show you something.” She spoke as if it was obvious like he was behaving strangely. He tried to shake off his confusion. He lifted his suspicions with an eyebrow and extended his hand to her with a sigh. She smiled, her posture straightening with a mix of excitement and confidence. “It isn’t far.” She tugged his arm as she made her way to a small rowboat tucked behind some brush. She pointed to it with her free hand, “get in.”

“Okay?” He cautiously stepped into the small vessel and tried to balance himself as he sat. She pushed it into the water before hopping in herself and beginning to row. It was quiet, the sun was illuminating her features from behind him. Her face looked absolutely gorgeous bathed in the reds and oranges around them. So beautiful it almost hurt, he wanted to reach out and touch her face but that would probably be strange… he quickly turned his attention to their surroundings.

\--)-(----)-(--

His back was to the sun, Maeri shifted her head to the side using his to block the light. Lukell’s body was silhouetted and while his features were dimmed it wasn’t so violent as to ruin the view. His jaw was strong, his lips were a terribly tempting shade of pink; she had to tear her eyes from them but not without paying for it with a worryingly noticeable lick of her own. His eyes were darting around her figure, as if he was nervous to focus on her. Maeri looked down, slightly disappointed after misinterpreting his avoidance. She looked back up, realizing she had to see where she was rowing. She couldn’t stop herself from looking at his face, his eyes were blue and regretful, his bottom lip was held back by his teeth forming an overall image of guilt and confusion. _ Was he hurting his bottom lip? His terrible teeth holding it captive? _ She simply had to rescue it.

\--)-(----)-(--

Lukell was seemingly infatuated with the slowly shrinking sheer shore and each leaf on the trees adorning it. Out of the corner of his eye he watched Maeri’s face fall. He swallowed his nerves and looked at her, he felt his heart crack. The small fracture emphasizing his remorse as he registered her sadness. The corners of her lips were tugged downward, the blues of her eyes reflecting the water not only in color but in the glossy sheen they were quickly starting to wear. His bottom lip was quivering slightly, he tucked it beneath his teeth in an attempt to calm it. Did he cause this? Lukell had always been in touch with his emotions, much more than the other young men he knew, but he couldn’t let the tears fighting for freedom win this time. 

Then she looked up, his eyes automatically softening, the fight dying ending in a truce as his eyes were dewy but far from dripping. Appearing more like a fresh spring morning than a somber rainstorm the forecast has threatened. She only watched his face for a few seconds before leaning forward, leaving an oar to lay briefly in the boat, and pulled his bottom lip free with her thumb. He fought the urge to plunge his mouth forward and capture it between his lips, to suck and kiss her… thumb...

She pulled it away far too fast, resuming her rowing to reverse their slight shift off course. Before he could really mourn the ghost of her touch on his lip they hit land.

She jumped out of the boat and pulled it onto the land, tapping his shoulder playfully, “come on!” He followed her out of the boat and down the bank, it wasn’t long before she fell to her knees. Before Lukell could question her new stance she crawled on all fours through a hole in the rock wall to their left. Then she was gone.

“Uhhhh...” he looked around awkwardly, unsure of what to do.

“Come onnn!” Floated out of the hole. He took a deep breath and followed suit. Entering a beautiful, open cave, a few candles lighting the rocky room. There were two tucked into shelf-like cavities in the walls and three more were sitting at varying heights atop rocks scattered about. A particularly large rock toward the back of the cave held its candle highest, the rock protruded from the ground, unmoveable. A rug decorated the floor as well as several fabrics draped in random areas, he turned to see her draping a grey-brown fabric over the entrance they had used. 

“What is this place?” His wonder drenching his tone.

She smiled, standing to meet him more levelly, “this is my place, no one really knows about it -- accept Alva -- so please don’t tell anyone.” She chuckled, tugged him down to sit on the rug with her. 

“I won’t, it’s gorgeous.”

“Thanks...” she blushed and it was painfully adorable. She moved so she was sitting cross-legged across from him, “this is where I go when I want to be alone or take a breather.” 

“It’s really nice...” he finally turned his face to her after feeling as though he had taken in the cave. “Does your dad know?”

“Yeah, I’ve been coming here since I was little.” She giggled, “he doesn’t fit through the entry though.”

Her smile was warm and inviting, he couldn’t resist emulating it. “So why did you show me your secret spot to me?”

She smirked at him, “I trust you.” She leaned forward, her breath teasing him with a hint of some sweet flavor. It took a lot of his effort to refrain from meeting her halfway and reveling in the full extent of that flavor. “Also...” the word slid from her lips as they slowly shaped each sound. Holding out the ‘oh’ at the end, the circle enticing him far more than it should. Why was that so attractive? He fought off a whine as she leaned back to her original position, “I want to learn about you and your past. So I will tell you a bit about mine and I’d rather get into that…  _ alone _ .”

“Ok, what do you want to know?”

Her smirk grew somehow, “well since our pasts seem tinged with a little darkness here and there -- and I don’t want to bring down the mood -- I brought some ale.” The procured a horn-like flask from somewhere behind her back. “Don’t worry,” she assured him, “it’s not strong enough for us to forget anything, just enough to keep things,” she paused to wink, “fun. Anyway, I’ll start.”

“Okay,” Lukell gently pressed his palm against one of her knees, “let me know if you want to switch.”

She nodded, “I had a good childhood. My parents were happy, I was happy.” She started tapping her foot lightly, “I always wanted to be a warrior, I want to fight for my people. So when I was given the opportunity to join my father on a raid,” her foot began tapping more aggressively, “of course I took it. But-” she sharply inhaled, taking a swig of the ale, her foot increasing in tempo, “but while we were gone, Heillstaðr, that’s the name of our ‘village,’ was attacked by our rivals. I wasn’t here to protect my mom.” Her foot was violently beating against the ground, “she and Aldarin’s mother were taken, along with most of our crops and riches.” She drank again.

Lukell laid his hand on her foot in an attempt to slow it, “hey.” She refused to remove the horn from her lips, successfully hiding her lips. “Hey.” He held her foot in place, “stop that.” He pulled the horn away from her lips and returned its cap before laying on the ground. Her eyes were squeezed shut but her sadness was leaking from its corners.

“The ale isn’t working,” she mumbled, her thick voice yanking Lukell’s heartstrings.

He frowned, “ale can be unpredictable.” His hands shifted to her waist before he gently twisted her so her back faced him. He tugged her backwards, whispering lightly against her ear, “is this okay?” She nodded and leaned into his chest, still keeping her face from his line of sight. Lukell held her, burying his nose in her hair.  _ How did she smell so sweet? _

\--)-(----)-(--

He spoke softly into her hair, his voice weaving through the strands and vibrating against her skin, “my father was a traveller until he met my mother.” His chuckle was light, gentle as it lifted the corners of her lips ever so slightly. “He was a little abnormal in his lack of faith but he was nothing compared to the anomalous rebel that was my mother. He used to say she made him believe in God, and that she was her.” Maeri hummed, he sighed. “He used to tell everyone this, they were shunned from quite a few villages for suggesting God was a woman before he learned to keep it to himself. When my mother discovered she was going to have me they were shunned again for refusing to marry.” He paused, one of his arms remained wrapped around her stomach while the other snaked up her side to comb through her hair. “They moved again and she took his name but they were still never married, she didn’t tell anyone but she took pride in her ownership of herself.” He scoffed, “I see where she was coming from but I would never marry to take ownership but to declare my adoration and necessity for my new wife.”

A brief image of Lukell standing beneath a series of decorated branches in black flashed before her eyes, a giddy smile on his face as he looked directly at her. Maeri smiled to herself.

“She refused to stay home and care for me while my father traveled so he stayed back and they raised me together. They made money by playing music, it was not something many people did so they actually were rather successful.” 

“They would sing?” She finally spoke up.

“No,” he shook his head against hers, “they both played this instrument. They made it themselves, it was like a wooden box but it had a hole in it and these strings and a stick- err- a plank? It’s kind of hard to explain it...”

“What did you call it?”

“A strengr. They taught me to play it but I haven’t played it in a really long time.” She hummed and he continued. “After a long time, my mother discovered she was with child again and my sister was born. Then… well you know what happened next.” 

“They sounded fun.”

“Yeah, they were. I hope I’ve inherited some of it.”

She turned her head to the side to see him, certain her cheeks were tear-stained but she didn’t care. His eyes were a little glossy but he maintained his composure. “I really like you.”

He chuckled, “that’s not quite what we were talking about...” He leaned to the side to face her more fully. His smile was kind and beautiful and incredibly welcoming to her lips as they crashed into it. Her hand tangled itself in the hair at the base of his skull as she pulled him down, closer to her. He hummed happily against her mouth and she gasped against his. It ended far too quickly in her opinion as he pulled away from, his hand cupping her cheek. “I really like you too.” She smiled and leaned up to kiss him once more, although it only lasted slightly longer than their first. She whined and pouted, his thumb caressed her cheek. “But I need to move slowly.”

His hand shifted to her chin as he turned her head away from him, “hey!” Her protests were quickly cut off with a sigh as he swiftly moved her hair from her shoulder and planted his lips on her neck in one action. 

He kissed up the column of her neck, words intermittent between them. “I… am… happy… to… kiss… you… but...” He stopped at her ear, “I don’t want to do anything else for a while.” His hushed voice tickled her eardrum in the most tantalizing ways. He nibbled and sucked lightly on her earlobe.

“Mmm...” she tried to lean into his chest further somehow, “but why?” Her disappointment drowning in her satisfaction.

He spoke into her ear again, “I want to cherish,” he kissed along her jaw, “every… moment… every...” He stopped when he had turned her face to his again, he softly pressed his lips against hers. He seemed to savor every second of the contact, “kiss,” he finished.

“Okay,” her eyes were dazed. Maeri had never met a man quite like Lukell, his self-control was astonishing. As much as she had protested she couldn’t deny that she was grateful for the pace he set, she liked the idea of treasuring each step of the way. Next thing she knew his lips were brushing against her neck again before he laid his head on her shoulder, nuzzling his cheek against hers. 

He tightened his arms around her waist and pulled her to him. She closed her eyes and he hummed in contentment, “I really really like you.” She sighed happily, “I’m warning you Maeri,” his tone incredibly playful, “I am a very affectionate man.”

“That’s okay,” she giggled, then her eyes flew open. “You didn’t drink any ale!”

“Well, apparently it didn’t work very well.”


	13. Did you change your mind about me last night?

Maeri and Lukell cuddled for a short while longer before her stomach growled. Lukell frowned and turned her body to the side a little, “hey.”

“Hey what?” She looked away as if she had no clue what was coming next.

“When was the last time you ate?” Yeah, she saw that coming.

“Sometime,” she drew out the end of the word, he pressed his lips together, “yesterday?”

His frown deepened. He stood, pulling her up with him. “Maeri, your dad literally makes food all day, every day.”

“I wasn’t hungry.” She shrugged.

He knit his brows into a light scowl, “your body disagrees.”

Maeri whined as he nudged her toward the entrance. “Come on, I’ve gone days without eating! We’re so comfortable here!” He turned to her, his brows looked angry but he was really just trying to distract from his smirk, “I don’t want to leave here!” 

He chuckled, brows fully loosening, “who knew you would become so clingy?” She scoffed, crossing her arms and stomping away from him. He tried to frown in reconcile but his smile was too strong. He watched her sit beside the largest rock in the cave, picking up some stone tools beside it. Refusing to meet his eyes, she began hammering the chisel into the rock. “Come on,” he approached her, “I was just teasing.” She dislodged a chunk of rock and poised it toward him threateningly. 

“Don’t you tell a soul!”

His smile was wide, infectious, hers was already sprouting when he nodded, “I promise this will stay between us.” She laid the chunk of stone on the ground, along with her tools, and stood to face him. “Shall we go get some food?” She nodded and they left the cave.

When they returned to the farmhouse they debated who would get her room. Seeing that neither Julaeka or Tomin were in the living room, they assumed the toddler was asleep in Maeri’s bed. When Lukell entered the small room he did find Julaeka curled up in the bed, but he also discovered Tomin taking up the majority of the floor as well. He quietly left and went to Maeri, who was lying on the floor, trying to get comfortable. “What’s wrong?” She asked, he was heaving, she thought he was crying.

“Your father is asleep on your floor.” He was laughing! Her eyes widened in disbelief. She went to see for herself and returned giggling herself. 

“Well then,” she leaned toward Lukell, blinking slowly, “we have the large bed to ourselves.” 

The two were laughing as they slipped under the thick, fur blanket. Briefly turning to each other and pausing, dead silence filling the room. “Do you-”

“I’m-” Stop. Silence. “Is this o-”

“Are you-” Stop. Silence. Then laughter. 

“Sorry,” she blushed, “I know we are moving slow, but I just wanted to tell you that I don’t expect anything to happen... even if we are sharing a bed.”

“Oh,” he chuckled, “me neither.” She smiled, turning to lay away from him on her side. He pulled her close to him, gently pressing a kiss into her temple before fully settling himself. Incredibly content.

\--)--)--(--(--

He awoke humming happily into her hair. He squinted in the light, trying not to move much in an attempt to avoid waking her. He deconstructed their position, it hadn’t changed much since they fell asleep: one arm lay beneath her neck, his other around her stomach. He could feel her breath gently lifting his palm. Her hair smelled of sea salt and bread and the combination was absolutely scrumptious. It was when his mind attempted to explore the extent of their contact that it shut down slightly. Her ass was pressing ever so sweetly against the outline of his cock in his pants. He let out a tight breath, trying desperately to change the topic slowly encroaching the entirety of his mind. Then she chuckled,  _ did I breathe that hard? _

“Did you change your mind about me last night?” He hummed quizzically. “Oh, I thought you pulled a knife on me.” Her smirk was absolutely oozing in her voice.

_ Was  _ I _ that hard!? _ “W-wh-” Lukell stumbled through his words, “n-no, well… No, I didn’t do that.”

She snorted, squirming back into him and yanking a startled cough from his chest -- as well as whipping his heart into action. He thought the Danes were the most threatening thing he could encounter but according to his heart rate, this one particular Dane could spark his instincts more efficiently than anything else sharing his planet. In one swift move she had consumed his mind, it was melting in acid when she turned her face to his. “Are you sure you want to move slowly?” 

_ Such a tease… _ “Of course.” He pouted at her, “I told you that was what I wanted.”

“Well,” she angled her head slightly downward but looked up at him through her lashes, “your body disagrees.” She bit her lower lip in the most adorable and ineffective attempt to hide her grin.

He scrunched his nose, “there are things that can be done to appease my body without moving fast.”

“Oh?”

He shook his head, laughing quietly, “consider it a riddle.” He kissed her nose before leaning over her to whisper in her ear, “I wonder if you can solve it.” 

She scoffed, crossing her arms as she rolled off of the bed. “Come on, Alva wants us all to get together today.” She stretched, yawning as she flexing her muscular physique, Lukell could all but drink in the view. “She wants to play ‘next to.’”

He followed her off the bed, giving her one last hug before releasing her to lead them out of the room. “‘Next to?’”

“You’ve never played?”

“No.”

She opened the door, revealing an incredibly smug Tomin at the table with a scowling Julaeka. Maeri looked back to wink at him quickly, “you’ll see what it is.”

“I better not have a new child in my home after last night.” Tomin hollered at them.

“Father!” Maeri sprinted over to him and held him in a faux chokehold, “maybe we’ll just need one less mouth to feed to make room then!”

He grabbed her arm and pushed it harder against his throat, “please, if you did that in my bed, kill me before I sleep another night on that frame.”

She laughed and released him in search of some food. “Do not fret, father. Lukell is respectful.” 

Tomin cocked a brow in the young man’s direction, he nodded. “Yes, I like to take my time.”

He chuckled, “okay.” He shrugged, “normally I wouldn’t believe you but you truly do seem like a romantic.” Lukell smiled in response, happily taking a chunk of bread from Maeri’s offering hand.

“You will have the house to yourself for the majority of today.” Maeri sat across from her father, “I’m taking these two out to a picnic with Alva and the group.” Tomin nodded in approval as he chugged a horn of water.

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

The trio walked to a small clearing in the woods between Maeri’s farmhouse and the larger village center, not far from the path. When they arrived Alva and Nidho were already seated, feeding each other. “Hey lovebirds,” Maeri teased. Alva winked at her with a smirk, pecking Nidho on the cheek before directing her attention to the rest.

“Hello.” She looked up, cupping her hands at her lips, “Rosi!” Lukell looked up to the sound of rustling leaves just in time to see a small blonde head jut out from between some branches. “She’s a climber,” Alva explained. The toddler hugged the trunk of the tree she was in and slid down it slowly. Once she reached the ground she trotted to Julaeka’s side and started babbling something about rocks.

“Hope, I’m not too late.” Aldarin strolled up from the other side of the woods.

Maeri shook her head, “right on time! Shall we play?”


	14. Who's next to...?

The teens sat in a circle, Rosik and Julaeka were collecting and comparing stones from a river nearby. Alva looked at Lukell with a hand on her chin and a questioning look on her face. “Do you know of ‘next to?’” He shook his head. “It’s simple,” she leaned back, “you can pick it up as we start.”

“Ok...” Lukell looked from face to face as he pondered what this game could possibly entail.

“We haven’t played in years.” Aldarin mused.

“That’s why I wanted to play it,” Alva explained. “So much has changed.”

“I’ll start!” Maeri chirped, “Who’s next to… fall on their face?” They all pointed to Aldarin.

He scoffed, “lame.”

“I hate to agree with him but,” Alva’s malicious grin only grew as her eyes darted from person to person, “we can do better than that.” She locked eyes with Maeri, “who’s next to get a good fucking?” She slowly extended her arm and pointed directly at her. One of Maeri’s eyebrows was slightly up, feigning innocence, but her smirk was confident. Aldarin and Nidho were starting to follow suit but before they could fully point Lukell flipped the situation with a finger in Nidho’s direction.

“You must be joking?” He said matter-of-factly. “It’s obviously Nidho.”

“Huh?” His face contorted as his eyes nearly crossed looking at the finger in front of him, he shook his head.

“With a woman like that, I doubt you’ll get through today without one.” 

Aldarin barked out a laugh and quickly shifting his arm in Nidho’s direction as well, “he’s right.”

Alva didn’t budge her stance on the matter but she did turn her eyes Lukell’s, clearly amused by the challenge. “But will we beat you to it?” She taunted.

Lukell shrugged, “doesn’t really matter does it?” Alva’s face automatically filled with dubiety, before she could question him he explained himself. “Nidho will receive a  _ good _ fucking, as you declared. Maeri, unfortunately, wouldn’t be quite as felicitous if she’s stuck with me.”

Alva scrunched her nose, sitting back and lowering her arm. “Fine,” she shrugged. “Now I just feel bad for my best friend.” The group laughed before continuing the game, Maeri leaned into Lukell for a second between rounds.

“Good job outwitting Alva,” she whispered. A few rounds ensued, mostly unimportant or boring questions to fill the time until someone could come up with something interesting. “Alright,” Maeri started. “Who’s next -- or should I say  _ first _ \-- to bear a child?” The group snickered collectively. Maeri and Aldarin, soon followed by Lukell, immediately directed their fingers to Alva and Nidho. Lukell noted Aldarin’s eyes dropping briefly, accompanied by a quiet sigh that seemed to go unnoticed by everyone else.

Alva laughed, pointing to herself and her man. “I must maintain family tradition!” She spoke as if she had no choice, it was her duty. “My mother had Nori when she had seventeen years. So really… I’m already two years late.” She made a goofy ‘welp’ face, “oops.”

Nidho moved slightly behind her, wrapped his arms around her waist, and tugged her back lightly to lean against his chest. “You know I’m ready when you are, my love.” She laid her head back on his shoulder, they looked at each other in complete adoration. He kissed her softly, “I can’t wait for our children to be a badass and beautiful as you.”

In the wake of Alva’s incredibly antagonistic humor and constant teasing, her expression in that moment was entirely soft. A subtle broken quality thickly veiled in the love she wore on her face. Her eyes grew shiny in the light as she stared into his eyes, releasing a slightly shaky sigh before interrupting the short silence. “You will be a brilliant father.” She leaned up to return his kiss. She remained against his chest but lifted her head to re-invite her friends into the moment.

“How  _ have _ you managed to avoid it so?” Maeri questioned, blushing slightly when Alva’s teasing smirk returned. “Out of curiosity of course.”

“Ah yes,” Alva chuckled, she looked around the group as if to be sure they were all paying attention to her lesson. “If the man removes himself before he spills you will not bear a child!” She crossed her arms and puffed her chest, incredibly proud of her discovery.

“Are you sure that’s all?” Maeri leaned forward, far too interested in this process for Lukell’s comfort.  _ Stop it, _ he thought to himself, _ this is the way the Danes are. I must learn to be comfortable with such discussion. _ He decided to toughen up, this was somewhat important information after all. 

Alva nodded. “Before I participated in any act of my own I theorized and tested my ideas on my parents and Nori. At first I thought it might’ve been the position, my parents tried several different ones but then my mother was with Rosik so that didn’t work very well. But then I thought it might be in the man’s function! After all, the seed is what it must grow from. I asked Nori to practice such avoidance and she was childless until she decided the wanted one. Do notice Hadda is only one year on age even though Nori has been with Iafri for four years.”

“Impressive,” Lukell mused, “that information is incredibly valuable.” Alva straightened up with the boosted confidence. “My people hardly ever discuss such things, we are taught not to talk about it nor do it unless we are married.”

Alva cackled, “how boring.”

Lukell chuckled in agreement, “very. May I ask, how many are in your family?”

“Sooo many!” Maeri teased, Alva laughed.

“Of my siblings, Nori is the oldest, she has twenty-one years, then there is me, Oddlaug of sixteen years, Sif of fourteen years, Ebba and Edda are twins of twelve years, and Rosik has three. The youngest in our family is Hadda, Nori’s baby. She and her husband Iafri were exploring so we had been caring for her.”

“All girls,” Aldarin added. “A family of nine and only one man. It seems to run in the family, considering Hadda, do you think any of you will have sons?”

Alva shrugged, “we will see, I suppose...” She spoke more quickly than usual. “Let us continue the game! Who’s next to… lose a fight!?”

There were a couple more rounds before the game was interrupted by a desperate voice calling from the road; “Alva! Rosik! Alva, where are you!? Are you out here?! Alva!?”

“Mother?!” She called back. There was some rustling before a tall woman emerged from the trees. She had sandy blonde hair draped over her shoulders in two thick braids, her blue eyes widening dramatically as she examined the group.

“Alva!” She hissed, grabbing her arm and yanking her up. She snatched Rosik up as well, both whining in protest as she dragged them a short distance away from the newly silenced group. They didn’t dare move to anger the woman further but they willed the quiet to carry her voice. A hushed, hoarse voice was scolding Alva just loud enough to be somewhat audible. “I told you not to spend time with him.”

“What?”

“We do  _ not _ trust men who carry that name!”

“Aldarin? Mother.” There was a slap, “mother! He’s different, he’s good.”

“That’s what he wants you to think.”

“Why are you like this? He’s a good man, his name does not determine his personality. He’s not the same as the Jarl or Felaks-”

“He has the same face!”

“Stop it.” Alva presumably stomped, pulling the now crying Rosik into her arms. “He is my friend. He is not the same. We will be home before nightfall.”

“No. You’re coming home now.” There was a loud groan.

“At least let me wish Nidho goodbye.”

“Fine.” As Alva’s steps grew closer Julaeka ran to Lukell and curled up in his lap.

Nidho stood in preparation, when Alva reappeared she kissed him deeply, pressing him against the trunk behind him. When she pulled away she whispered something in his ear, he nodded in response. She kissed him one more time, adding another hushed instruction, before stomping back to her mother’s side with a wave goodbye to everyone else. Nidho shook his head, blinking away the lust in his eyes. “Uh, she said she’d like to talk to you tomorrow.”

“Not tonight?” Maeri smirked. He shook his head again and she laughed. “Okay, tell her I’ll come to her home tomorrow.” He nodded.

“Well...” Aldarin began, clearly uncomfortable with his involvement in her scolding. “I’m sorry guys… I guess the picnic is over.”

“Don’t be, man.” Nidho gave Aldarin patted his shoulder, “it’s not your fault.”

“Yeah, whatever your family has done doesn’t make you the same.” Maeri tried to help.

“What did they even do?” Aldarin’s voice was shaky, “I know my dad’s a dick and my brother’s mean but her parents hate them… hate me.”

“We’ll figure it out someday,” Nidho comforted, helping him up and pulling him into a hug. “Let’s get back, I’m afraid the picnic is indeed over.” He nodded, “see you three!” Maeri waved goodbye as they left the clearing.

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

“You two will come with me tomorrow.” Maeri across from Lukell and beside her father as they ate dinner. He had just finished coaxing Julaeka to eat her food, with the help of slightly guilty Tomin, after he had arranged her meal in a smiley face. She didn’t want to hurt the face. 

“Okay,” he sipped his ale, “I’m glad Jules and Rosik get along so well, she didn’t even have friends like that in our village.”

“Oi,” Tomin slapped a hand on Maeri's shoulder, “are you all sharing that bed in your room?”

She shrugged, “I guess.”

He shook his head. “It’s too small.”

“We’ll manage.”

“It’s fine for tonight I suppose,” he tapped the table. “While you guys are away tomorrow I will fashion a larger bed.”

“Thanks father!” She gave him a quick side hug, “are you sure it will fit in that small room, though?”

He chuckled, “I’ll extend that as well then.”

“Thank you.” Her smile was genuine, emerging from true gratitude.

“Of course,” he drank some ale. “You are my daughter, you must have the best.”


	15. So You Have No Idea Why?

When they arrived at Alva’s farmhouse Lukell began noting its differences from Maeri’s. It was larger, but not by much. They were not brought inside but he caught a glimpse through the briefly open door, the space looked very cramped. “Oh!” Alva stopped in place and turned back toward the house, “Rosi!” She called in.

“Why do you need Rosik?” Her mother’s voice bounced from within.

“She likes hanging out with Julaeka!”

“Julaeka?” Scampering feet began and quickly stopped with a squeal. “Who is Julaeka?” The door opened again, it’s shadow filled with the tall woman from the day before with a squirming toddler dangling at her side. Her eyes brightened at the sight of Lukell and Julaeka, she gasped, nearly dropping Rosik. “Are these the Franks Maeri took?!” Her head tilted sideways, “hey Maeri!”

Maeri nodded, “hey Marlodd!” She stepped forward, she reached to steal Rosik just as the toddler was pulled just from her reach as Alva’s mother turned back toward the house.

“Oddlaug! Sif! Eb-” She groaned, “children! Come! Opir! You too! COME!” If he didn’t know better Lukell would’ve thought a stampede was approaching. Alva quickly moved to stand beside the trio.

“What is it, mother?” 

“Come meet the Franks!” A symphony of ‘oohs’ nearly knocked the door from its hinges. The family filed out to observe them, Lukell returned the favor.

Alva’s father was tall and large, sporting dark brown hair and eyes. A thick beard clung to his chin, drooping lower on the sides than the middle to form a crescent. He would have towered over most but the whole family was quite tall. He first spotted the twins, identical and giggling they were the shortest of the group. By height he had roughly matched their ages to what Alva had explained the day prior. They didn’t look the same, excluding the twins, but they did all carry the same traits. Soft, rounded jaws, almond eyes, but shapes aside, their colors truly united their appearances. Like Alva, her father and sisters wore dark brown hair with some slightly varying shades almost like mounds of healthy soil framing their faces. They all had brown eyes as well, ranging from near-black to almost hazel. All, besides two. 

Marlodd’s hair was sandy, flowing down her shoulder to meet Rosik’s matching head. The toddler had child features but she still strikingly resembled her mother. While the rests’ faces donned medium noses, either bulbed or strong, the blondes had small, dainty noses. When she finally released Rosik from her grip the small birchwood bobbed amidst the oak as she neared the visitors. She collided with Julaeka, blonde strands mixing with black as they fell to the ground in a tangled hug. A wave of ‘aww’ fell over the family. “It’s nice to meet you all.” Lukell smiled in an extension of good faith.

“Same to you,” the tallest daughter winked before turning on her heel to walk away. “Ow!” A small rock bounced from the back of her head as it turned away.

“He’s mine Sif.” She stuck her tongue out and continued her route back into the house. The twins followed with Opir by their side.

“What are you guys doing today?” The second tallest girl was the only child to remain.

“Not much, just talking about random things.” Maeri chuckled.

“Can I come?”

“I’m sorry, Oddlaug, not this time.” Alva frowned, placing a comforting pat on her sister’s shoulder. “Why don’t you see what Cris is doing today?”

“I thought he went with Nidho to camp?”

Alva smiled, “they haven’t left yet.” She winked.

Oddlaug smiled meekly, “okay! Thank you, Alva.”

“Love you too.” The sister jogged around the farmhouse and out of sight.

Her mother assumed her position quickly. “Who else is with you today?” She asked briskly, the amusement from before drained from her tone.

“No one else, just who you see before you.” Alva crossed her arms, clearly annoyed by the question.

Her lips tightened before she shook her head and smiled, “well, have fun.” She pivoted to leave, pausing and turning briefly. “I love you.”

“I love you,” Alva answered, her mother disappearing behind the door soon after. Lukell heard hooves, he followed Alva’s gaze to see Oddlaug waving from atop a palomino Fjord. She snapped her head to the other side and kicked the horse into a gallop. Alva faced the group. “Let’s hike down to the river bank, I need to collect fish for dinner.” Maeri nodded, Lukell gestured for her to lead the way.

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

Splash. Maeri pulled her spear from the water, a fish flexing on its end before stilling. “So you have no idea why?” She dropped the fish into their bucket, which sat atop a small floating raft of wood. They were speaking quietly so as to not alert the fish.

Alva shook her head. Splash. “They’ve both been restrictive.” The spear came up with a fish. She tossed it into the bucket and she poised again, “I think it started after that last week hike.”

“Week hike?” Lukell was standing in the shallows, close enough to toddlers to aid if necessary but not so close he encroached. He acted as a midpoint between the two groups of girls.

“Yeah, my father used to take my sisters and I on these week-long hikes in the mountains. My mother would stay behind to care for the youngest. When Edda and Ebba were around eight they were finally old enough to come along,” she pierced the clear blue water. “But we never went again after that first hike with them.” The spear shook with its catch. “And a few months after that my parents were very vocal about their disdain for the Hagrestas.”

“Do you think something happened?”

“I don’t see any other explanation. It may have happened while we were away because I didn’t know about anything but then again,” splash. “The reaction would be a little too delayed.” The spear was bare, she quickly poised again. “Not to mention I only had about fifteen years at the time, I was probably quite oblivious.”

“Hmm.” Lukell looked down at his rippling reflection. “How peculiar...”

“Yeah.” Splash. “I wish they’d get over it, we’ve been friends with Aldarin since we were Rosik’s age.” There was a thud of another fish falling into the bucket. “They should know that he is a good person.”

“It is quite aggravating.” Maeri agreed. The teenagers fell silent, the sound of running water and splashing, squealing toddlers filling their ears. After a short while Maeri spoke up, “Lukell, have you done this before.”

He looked up, his eyes meeting hers. “No, I have not.”

“Come!” She beckoned him toward her, “let me show you!”

“But-” he weakly pointed to the toddlers.

“They’re practically on land!” She flipped her tool, holding just below the point and tapping him with the dull end. “You will only be a spears-length further than you are now.” He shrugged in defeat and waded to her side. She stood behind him, just slightly smaller than he was. She showed him how to hold the spear, gently adjusting his position as he copied her. On her toes, she placed her head on his shoulder and whispered into his ear. “The water is clear, you can see the fish as they pass.” She exhaled a warm breath, it beat against his eardrum and made his head feel fuzzy. “Don’t move, let one put itself in your path.” Just as she explained a particularly large fish was moseying en route to his position. “Then… strike!” He thrust the spear into the water, in a split second the startled fish scattered. The largest fish attempted to wiggle its fins and wriggle free but it was pinned to the bay floor with Lukell’s spear.

“Now what?” 

“Pull the spear up, but not directly; sideways.” Lukell lifted the spear, pulling the fish from the water. It stilled and Maeri reached up, smiling at his success as she pulled it off and dropped it into the bucket. She turned back to Lukell, quickly extending her hand in time to catch the spear he dropped. Before she could scold him he took her face in his hands and pressed an excited, giddy kiss against her lips.

He pulled away with a heavy exhale. “You’re beautiful when you’re proud.”

“You’re attractive when you achieve something.” They chuckled, she tapped her head against his chest lightly, playfully.

“LuKkKk!” Lukell quickly darted his head in Julaeka’s direction, she was waving him over frantically.

He gave Maeri a lopsided smile, “I am being summoned.” She nodded as he waded over to his sister.

\--)-(----)-(--

“So,” Maeri shook her head, knowing exactly what would follow Alva’s introduction. “You two are officially fucking now? That’s why you asked of my methods yesterday?”

“He’s some sort of _gentleman,_ ” she complimented her tease with an exaggerated accent. Alva cocked a brow. “He wants to ‘take it slow’ or something like that.”

Alva cackled, “what does that mean!?”

Maeri shrugged with a laugh of her own, “I don’t really know!” She stabbed her spear into the soft ground beneath the water and leaned against it slightly. “I think he just wants to go step by step, you know?”

“I suppose.”

“Honestly,” Maeri pulled her spear from the earth, “I think it’s refreshing.”

Alva smiled, “well good. I think you two fit nicely.” She chuckled and looked down, “I think he might be yours.” Maeri rolled her eyes. “Stop. I don’t just mean you have him. I mean he belongs to you, with you, and you him. It’s about time someone else found someone like that.”

“Aw,” Maeri pouted, “were you waiting for me?” 

Alva shook her head with a chuckle, “I wouldn’t say that.”

“Well, I’m glad you’re as happy about it as I am.”

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

A few days have passed, nothing really happened. Tomin has been showing Lukell how to bake bread. However, this day, Maeri offered to make dinner while Tomin showed Lukell how to sow seeds. Julaeka found both options incredibly boring, luckily for her Alva and Nidho offered to take her a Rosik on an ‘adventure.’ Maeri was sitting alone in the farmhouse, weaving as she often did in her free time, when she heard hooves approaching. She put down her project, standing as a series of antsy knocks sounded from the door. She opened it to see Aldarin standing before her. “Hey?”

“Maeri. Are you alone?” He looked around anxiously.

“Yeah?” 

His eyes settled on hers with a small smile. “Good, we need to talk about something.”


	16. What has happened?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter includes sexual assault. If you wish to skip it you can scroll to the first divider or not read this chapter. It is relevant to the plot.

“May I come in?” Maeri nodded, stepping aside to make room for his entrance. 

“Did something happen?” 

He closed the door behind him, walking further into the room as he spoke cautiously. “You could say that.”

She followed him, “what do you mean? What has happened?”

He ventured even deeper into the house, stopping beside the table and tapping his fingers upon its top. It was a bouncy beat, alternating quickly between his first two fingers. His slow explanation clashed subtly with noise. “You and Lukell.” He clicked his tongue once, “You two are fucking?”

She knit her brows, moving to stand across the table from him. “Not necessarily.” She pressed her lips together, wearing her perplexion on her sleeve. “We will be eventually, though. Why do you ask?”

“I have developed some concerns.”

“I thought you got along with Lukell...” Her expression deepened.

“As did I.” He sighed mournfully, “I’m afraid my opinion on him has changed. I would much rather you weren’t his.”

She turned her head to the left slightly as she couldn’t reinforce her expression otherwise. “What has caused these concerns?”

Aldarin moved around the edge of the table, “I’m afraid he holds far too many aspects of his mother culture.” He stood at her side momentarily, looking at her with troubled eyes. “I’m afraid he’ll taint your beliefs...” 

“What drew you to that conclusion?” She grew slightly defensive, “he is very open and accepting to our culture.”

“I would rather you weren’t his.” He looked down, gently biting his lower lip before moving again; this time to stand behind her. “I...” he leaned forward, moving the hair over her shoulder to rest on her back as he spoke in whispers, “I think you should be mine instead.” 

Shivers ran down her spine, shaking her thoroughly. Her stomach churned into a queasy, sea-sickening whirlpool. She felt nauseous as she spun into the pit. She attempted to step forward but she only bumped into the table. The movement keeled her. He shoved her shoulders. Her chest collided with the tabletop. She gasped, looking behind her frantically. His green eyes were glinting. His crooked grin stirring her whirlpool like a stew. She tried to lift herself. One hand pushed her back down. The other moved to her waist. Her brain felt slow. The world was fast. She inhaled deeply as he started fumbling with the waistband. 

She lifted one of her legs and turned her heel inward, quickly bucking it up into his dick. She startled him, he stepped back, howling in pain. She jumped up and whipped around, swinging her leg around with her. Her foot slammed against his temple and he crumpled to his knees. Maeri’s fist threw his head back with a quick jab. She picked up a small stool and swung it against his head. He hit the ground with a thud. Unconscious. She grabbed a knife from the kitchen and hastily “I must be alone. I will be back.” onto the seat of the stool. Maybe she noticed the red dripping down its side, if she did she didn’t care. She smashed the legs of the stool against his stomach, breaking them. He groaned. She placed the now detached stool top onto the table and swiftly left the farmhouse.

\--)--)--(--(--

Lukell looked up to the sound of hooves in the distance, he saw a blonde man riding away from the farmhouse. He turned to Tomin, “Aldarin was there for a short time.” 

He looked back at the progress they had made, “yeah he was here for only two and a half rows,” He shrugged, “albeit slow rows. Although you are picking up the skill nicely.” They exchanged smiles. 

Lukell shrugged it off, trying to ignore the unwarranted pit developing in his gut. It was already past midday, he knew they’d be returning soon anyway. His speed had slowly quickened as the day commenced. Lukell was quite confident that farming was not a talent he had but indeed a skill he could easily grow and nurture. 

About ten rows later Tomin peered up at the ever dimming sky. “We’ll do two more.” They only completed one more as Lukell’s eyes were once again drawn to the sound of hooves. Alva was returning with Jules. The men decided to finish up early and made their way back to the farmhouse, beating Alva by less than a minute. Seeing her so close, they stood to wait for her, leaning against the farmhouse door.

“Hey!” Alva didn’t dismount. She lifted the toddler gently and passed her to Lukell. “How was farming?”

“Okay,” he shrugged with a small smile. Julaeka slumped against his shoulder, exhausted from her fun day.

She chuckled, “I’d stick around but I have to get back to my family.” She clasped her hands before her mouth and called out, “Maeri!” No response. She briefly lifted a brow and shrugged her lips. “Well, tell her I said hi.” Lukell nodded, trying to subdue the feeling that had just been reinvigorated in his gut. She turned and rode off, he turned to the door, frantically fiddling with its handle.

“What’s wrong?” Tomin’s concern grew with Lukell’s. 

He thrust open the door and saw no Maeri. Before he could even think to check her room he noticed a pool of blood on the floor near the table. He ran to it, carefully clutching his sister to his chest. His grim eyes stared back at him faintly through the red mirror. He heard Tomin gasp distantly. He looked around frantically, checking the nearby floor and objects. Then he noticed the stool top upon the table. He read the words aloud. “I must be alone. I will be back.” 

Tomin shuddered. He sat, cradling his head in his hands. “No...” He spoke shakily, his voice thick with tears. Julaeka seemed to be catching on to the situation through her sleepiness, a small rain beginning to soak Lukell’s shoulder. “She doesn’t do this, you know.” Tomin looked at Lukell, his eyes red with fear and sadness. “She doesn’t run off to be alone normally. It is reserved for when something bad has happened.”

Lukell swallowed hard, the tears spilling from his eyes regardless. His legs were shaky, he sat beside Tomin. “Does she us-”

“Yes, it’s always the same spot.” Tomin sniffled, “her mother would go get her when she was younger.” He shook his head, “it’s such a rare occurrence. It hasn’t happened since she was taken.” His eyes met Lukell’s, they were like Maeri’s but green. They were desperate. “I can’t get into the cave.” He gasped for air as tears raced down his cheeks. Bawling, he was nearly hyperventilating. “I- I can’t- I can’t-”

Lukell laid his hand on his shoulder. “I can...” he muttered, raising his voice gently, “I can- I can get to her. I will get her.” 

Tomin nodded and gestured for Julaeka, “leave her with me. I am trusting you with my family, you can trust me.”

“I know,” Lukell sniffled. He carefully lifted Julaeka from his lap and placed her in Tomin’s. He stood, “I must go now.” Tomin nodded in agreement. Lukell failed an attempt at a comforting smile as his fears forcefully kept his lips angled downward. He ran down to the bank, the boat was gone. “Fuck,” he breaths were shallow as he returned to the house and explained the issue to Tomin. He was directed to an old canoe a short walk down the water. It was an even short run. Lukell shoved the boat into the water and rowed as fast as he could. He hit land and leaped from the small vessel. He quickly entered the cave. There she was.

Maeri sat on the ground, arms wrapped around her knees; she was shaking a little. He moved toward her, “hey, hey,” he went to place a hand on her shoulder but stopped in his tracks when she lifted her head. He realized she hadn’t been crying, her eyes were not glossy, they were fiery --  _ sultry _ . The smirk licked her lips like a flame, flickering from wicked to purely sinful in a matter of seconds. She sat up, pulling her arms back until her palms rested atop her knees. She bit her bottom lip and turned her head to the side slightly as she slowly parted her thighs. She was fully clothed but the invitation was clear.

Without a thought he ran to her, sliding across the cave floor to meet her. His lips pressed against her with a need he had never felt before. He gripped her body, holding her as tightly as possible. His tongue danced with hers, exploring her mouth as she moaned into his. It vibrated down his throat and made his cock tingle. Her hands tugged at his hair, pulling a moan of his own from somewhere deep inside of him. He felt one of her hands drift down his cheek, and then was gone. The fabric against his palm loosed as her other hand left his hair and disappeared behind her. He pulled away quickly, moving his hand to grasp the knot she was just untied. 

“No...” He shook his head gently. Her lips were red from his passionate lust, her eyes dampening from his tender care. 

“W-why not?” She stumbled, leaning up to kiss him. 

He gently stopped her with a hand on her cheek. “Something happened to you today. You don’t really want this now.”

“I do.” She spat. “You just don’t want me.”

“What? No, that’s not-”

“I’m too violent? Too gross?” She fired off one potential dislike after another, refusing to allow him to explain himself. “What is it?” She rhetorically interrogated. “Am I ugly? Am I-”

He held her face in his hands and cut her off with his lips. Swallowing her self-deprecation before she could thrust it into the world. When he pulled away he spoke quickly, before she could stop him. “No. I do want you. More than you know. You occupy my resting thoughts and dance through my active thoughts. Somehow my mind will find its way back to you regardless of where it starts. I desire you incredibly.” Lukell could almost see the ghost of a smile on her lips. “I don’t know what happened to you today, but something did. If you do not wish to tell me then fine but I will not allow a special memory to be tainted by whatever it was.” She shuddered and fell against his chest.

“I- I’m sorry.” He shook his head, running a hand through her hair while the other gently rubbed the freshly revealed skin of her back, her slacked top had slid down slightly. 

“Please, don’t be.” He kissed her hair, “you’re hurt inside. People do things they normally wouldn’t when they are hurt internally, it’s not your fault.”

\--)-(----)-(--

“It’s not your fault,” rang through her ears. Reverberating in her mind, trying to find a place to nestle into. “It’s not your fault...”  _ Did he repeat it or was that in her head? _ The tears she had fought down in preparation for what seemed like a great idea sprang free. 

“I so stupid...” She mumbled.

“No...”

“So, so stupid.” She repeated herself, ignoring his disagreement. “I thought he was Aldarin...”

“N- wait.” He cautiously pried her from his chest to look into her eyes. “Aldarin didn’t visit you today?”

Her eyes slammed shut in an attempt to keep reality out. She shook her head, quickly reopening her eyes upon the realization her mind was much worse. “It- It was- It was-” she struggled to flick the name from her tongue.

“I know who it was.” She felt strangled, gasping for air where she could manage between sobs. He held her head to his chest once again. “Did he… did he hurt you?” She nodded hesitantly.

“He-”

“You don’t have to say it,” Lukell assured her.

“No, he didn’t-” She swallowed and tried beginning again elsewhere in the thought. “I stopped him...” she exhaled sharply, “but he tried to...”

Lukell combed his fingers through her hair, his heartbeat offering as much comfort to her as his arms and words. “It’s not your fault, you did the best thing you could.”

“I knew that could happen, it  _ would  _ happen, but I didn’t imagine I’d feel so… helpless...”

“Hey...” He kissed her forehead, “you weren’t helpless, though. You saved yourself.”

“Thank you...” She buried her head into his chest as much as she could. 

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

They sat like this for a short while, until the faint light peeking through the entrance was completely gone. Her sobs had lessened but Maeri still felt weak. She pitied herself, and then reprimanded herself for being so weak as to do so. The cycle repeated but whenever she felt her mind spiraling down too far she would nuzzle Lukell’s chest and lift her spirits a little. “Come,” Lukell began to move. She whined, she couldn’t part from him.  _ What would happen if he couldn’t lift her dismal mood? _ “Let’s go back, your father is terrified.”

“But- I- I can’t...” She shook her head and clutched him. Then his arms were moving and the cold rock beneath her slowly waned. He had scooped up her body, cradling her against his chest. He planted a delicate kiss on her lips and another on her forehead. 

“I will be with you,” he pressed his forehead to hers momentarily, “always.” When he pulled away she carefully nodded. 

He awkwardly shimmied them through the entrance, refusing to let her go. In the boat he laid her against his chest as he rowed with haste. They only parted briefly when he pulled the canoe ashore but he quickly lifted her back into his arms. He carried her to the farmhouse, nudging the door open with his foot. When Tomin saw them he sighed in relief, rushing to their side. He and Maeri made brief eye contact before her eyes flicked around the room and she spun her head to hide against Lukell. He nodded somberly.

“You two have her bed to yourselves tonight, Julaeka is in mine.” Lukell smiled weakly. “I will sleep on the floor.”

“I know,” Lukell spoke quietly, glancing at the girl in his arms. 

Tomin patted his shoulder. “I love you Maeri.”

“I love you too,” she mumbled. Her father retreated to his room. 

Lukell speedily went to her room, it was bigger as Tomin had promised those days ago. He laid her down and quickly snuggled in beside her, pulling the blanket to cover what parts of her he couldn’t. The bed had also been enlarged, but in this moment, the two were so close they hardly took up any space. Her head was buried in his chest once again, one of his arms beneath her neck. His hands either gently massaging her scalp or her back. His leg was also hooked over hers, although neither seemed to pay it any mind. He enclosed her in his hold and she was clinging to him. “I-” Lukell breathed against her ear, pausing. “You mean so much to me...”

Despite her miserable day a smile crawled onto her lips. “You mean so much to me,” she echoed. He sighed, kissing her head once more. 


	17. Why?

When Maeri woke up she was tucked into Lukell’s grip. His chest rose and fell before her eyes, an arm and a leg of his were wrapped around her body. While she was being held tightly she wasn’t completely still. She decided to drink in his sleep state. 

His face was gorgeous; his eyes peacefully closed, his lips quirked in the slightest smile, his shaggy hair falling over his forehead lopsidedly. She couldn’t resist her smile. She also couldn’t resist her hand as it slowly shifted up his chest, pausing momentarily to bask in his heartbeat. Her fingertips grazed up his neck, he shivered, she stopped, he didn’t wake. Her fingertips traced his jaw and up the side of his face, only changing route to gently brush his hair off his forehead. She ran those fingers through his hair and was rewarded with an adorable sigh of satisfaction. He coiled tighter around her body. One eye slowly peeked open and his smile grew. 

“You know…” His voice was rugged with morning, the residual sleepiness only adding to the sentiment. “If I squint just like this with the light shining through that spot over there,” his hand moved from the small other back to her cheek, “you look like you’re glowing.” His tired, goofy grin split into a series of disoriented giggles. His thumb was rubbing soft circles against her cheek, sandwiching her face between the comfortable bed and his comforting touch.

“Yeah, well you look adorable when you’re asleep!” He stopped giggling and looked at her gravely. He quickly pressed his lips to hers in a sweet, rushed kiss before tightening around her so she couldn’t move. “Hey!” He erupted into another fit of giggles, this time jostling her body with his.

“What?” His voice vibrated against the top of her hair.

“Let me go!” She squirmed against him but his arms didn’t loosen.

“Mmm...” he hummed in thought. “I don’t know...”

She squirmed harder, “let me go!!”

He stopped chuckling and his grip lacked a little, “do you need me to?” His tone was laced with concern. Maeri nodded, avoiding eye contact. His grip fully loosened, his voice soaked with guilt, “oh Maeri, I’m sorry, I-” She quickly overtook him. She pushed him onto his back, crawling on top of him and holding him down. “Now wait a minute...”

“What?” She mimicked him with a smirk.

“I’m starting to think you didn’t need me to let you go...” He knit his brows and pouted.

“Yeah,” it was her turn to giggle. “But I appreciate your care.” She leaned down to kiss him. After a few seconds she lightly licked his bottom lip and he happily obliged, opening his mouth slightly for her. She sucked his bottom lip between hers, biting it gently. Without thinking Maeri ground her hips against his, finally considering how she had instinctively straddled him. He gasped into her mouth, catching his breath in his chest. He exhaled with a growl, in one fluid motion he swiftly grabbed her hips, securing her in place as he flipped them over. He lunged for her lips, kissing her fiercely and pressing the back of her head so far into the pillow she felt it on her cheeks. Her moan grew as his lips abandoned hers in favor of her jaw, kissing up the line. He nipped at the skin beneath her ear in harsh contrast to the brushing of his lips down her neck that followed. 

His lips were soft against her neck, barely tickling her senses. She sunk into the tender sensation, completely caught off guard when bounced up slightly. He had thrusted against her and was awarded a high pitched moan. He bit lightly at her shoulder as his hand slid up her side to cup her face. He paused, completely stilled for a moment. He rolled off and laid beside her. “Lukell?” She turned on her side, facing her front toward him. He cautiously turned his head to hers, quickly slipping one of his knuckles between his lips.

“I’m forry...” He mumbled, shifting his gaze back to the roof of the farmhouse. 

“Why?” She pressed her palm against his cheek and pushed his head back toward hers.

“I don’t know what came ofer me.” He closed his eyes. Her brows furrowed, she tugged at his hand.

“What are you doing?” He opened his eyes quizzically, she tugged at his hand again, slightly dislodging his knuckle. He flicked his eyes down to his hand and slowly removed it with a sigh. Maeri took it, swiftly discovering the indented teeth marks. She pouted at the sheepish boy as he averted his eyes. “Why are you biting yourself!?” She kissed around his knuckle.

“I wasn’t hurting myself...” he trailed off. She cocked a brow with annoyance. “You make me feel a way I never have before.” He looked down, ashamed. 

“You say it like it’s wrong...” Maeri suddenly felt self-conscious and small; the bed doubling, maybe even tripling in size around her. The distance between her and Lukell seemed massive yet it was crossed and closed soon after her shrinking. He held her close, running his fingers through her hair.

“You’re perfect.” He whispered softly into her hair. “This is entirely concerning me.” He pulled her face from his chest to look at her while he explained. “My emotions are strong and dominating. When something angers me I feel this incendiary rage, and you...” he kissed her forehead, “you ignite my heart in a vigorous flame that should bubble my blood but instead, it only warms my skin. Your touch heightens the sensation and inspires an intense desire for me to remove the fabric trapping my body and keeping it from you.”

She considered his statement, “but you have such a calm demeanor.”

He smiled weakly. “Not everything affects me so.”

“I’m sorry...”

“Hey!” He kissed her softly, “don’t be! I like the feeling you instill in me. I just worry I’m no longer entirely in control when it’s emboldened.” She nodded in understanding, wiggling to cuddle more comfortably. “Maeri?” He muttered quietly, “you can call me Luka”

“Huh?”

“You don’t have to always say my full name,” he answered. “You can call me Luka.”

Her heart fluttered, “you said no one has called you that since your parents...”

“I know.” He kissed down the side of her face before fully coiling around her once again.

\--)--)--(--(--

After a period of time that passed far too fast Tomin came barrelling into the room. He let out a loud sigh of relief. “You two are so innocent.” Maeri groaned and tried to bury herself further in Luka’s grip. Tomin laughed heartily, “you can stay.” He literally pulled Lukell’s leg, “you, son, need to come fetch that spare boat with me.” Maeri groaned again.

Luka planted a little kiss on her forehead as he rolled to get off of the bed. She followed suit. “Julaeka would hate me if I slept instead of playing with her,” she explained. Tomin and Lukell left the girls in the farmhouse as they walked to the bank and awkwardly climbed into the boat. The short row to the cave entrance was almost entirely silent.

When they reached land again Tomin patted his shoulder, “thank you.” 

“Hm?”

“I think you may be perfect for my daughter.”

Lukell grinned, “she’s certainly perfect.” Tomin nodded and pointed him toward the other boat.

“Maeri likes keeping this spot under wraps, leaving this here might draw attention.”

Lukell nodded and climbed into the canoe. “Thank you,” he began rowing back toward the bank.

“For?” Tomin followed the small boat wake.

“Raising Maeri to be so perfect.”

Tomin chuckled, “I’d like to accept that compliment but I think that is mostly due to her mother.”

“She sounds like a wonderful woman.”

“She is.” Tomin's smile slowly faded, “ _ was _ .”

“You don’t know that. She sounds like a survivor.” Lukell reasoned with the quickly saddening man.

“You’re right.” They arrived at the bank and returned to the farmhouse. Before they went back inside Tomin patted his shoulder again, “you’re a good kid.”

Lukell smiled up at him. “You’re a good man.”


	18. What's up?

“Hey man!” Lukell jumped as a palm slapped against his shoulder. He whipped around to see Nidho grinning behind him.

“-Hey Nidho.” Lukell shook off the brief shock. “What’s up?”

“Alva said you and Maeri are like not fucking but you both agree that you will be but also that you won’t now… anyway we’re going for a quick hike and Alva thinks you two should come along.”

“Hmm...” Lukell looked around, he had been splitting wood for a while. “Let me ask Maeri.”

“No need!” Nidho sat back on a nearby stump, “what do you think Alva’s doing?‘ Lukell nodded, continuing his way through the pile of logs.

He turned toward the sound of feet barrelling toward him, tipped off by Nidho’s snickers. He dropped the axe just in time as Maeri tackled him in a flying hug. “Woah!” The wind flew out of him as he stumbled backward, just barely managing to avoid falling and supporting her weight in the process. “What’s- what’s up.” He tried to recover.

She dropped her feet back to the ground, laughing hysterically. “We must go!” She exclaimed. “My father can watch your sister. You need to build some muscle if you’re going to become one of us!”

“I have muscle!” He defended.

“Fine. Wrestle me, then.” Her eyes were filled with fire with the challenge. She smirked wildly, beckoning his agreement.

“Fine!” He pulled her away from the wood pile and the axe, revelling in how easy it was to move her. They stood apart, angled toward each other, crouched in preparation. “Well, are you coming?”

“You first.”

He barked out a laugh, she ran toward him, likely in an attempt to catch him off guard. He was ready for her, moving forward slightly. His arms were open, waiting to catch her move. But next thing he knew she was no longer in front of him. She pulled his left arm with her as she swung around and pounced on him from behind. He fell to the ground on his stomach, his arm pinned between their bodies. “How- you- okay… you are stronger.”

“She didn’t win with strength!” Nidho called out at them.

“She used a different strength.” Lukell tried to shrug but it was heard with a person on his back, “It doesn’t matter, she won.” He tried to lift himself but she didn’t budge. He shimmied in an attempt to shake her but she didn’t budge. After a few seconds she rolled off in a fit of giggles. “I wanted to come anyway.” He immediately retaliated on her with a vicious onslaught of tickles. 

“AH! Stop- stop it! StOp!!” He finally scooped her up with a quick kiss.

“Well, let’s go then.”

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

Alva and Nidho led the way. The base of the mountain wasn’t far from Alva’s farmhouse. They reached a point where there was an opening in the trees. They were high enough for Lukell to see everything he could recognize from the trade hub, all about toy sized. He looked out onto the bay it sat upon and to the neighboring landscape. The scenery was truly gorgeous. “It’s beautiful...” he muttered.

“Oh that’s right, your people live in bland land.” Alva teased.

“There are landmarks in Francia,” he defended. “Although the average settlement certainly isn’t of this caliber.” He stood, gazing at the view. It wasn’t until he felt a pair of arms wrap around his chest that he thought to move.

“Come on  _ beautiful _ ,” Maeri whispered in his ear, a tease in more ways than one.

He followed her and the rest further up. “Have you guys hiked this before?”

“Of course!” Alva called back. Maeri whipped the back of her shoulder with her palm, “ow!”

“Lay off.” She chastised.

“It’s fine,” Lukell chuckled. “Thank you for being my knight in shining armor though.”

Her brows furrowed, “your what?”

“My knight in shining armor.” He repeated.

“How would the night be in armor?”

“By putting it on?” Now they were both incredibly confused. “You know, like a member of the guard.” She shook her head. He pursed his lips momentarily before parting them in a sudden realization, “oh! Like a warrior, knights are like warriors.”

“Hmm,” she considered, “do they fight at night?” He shook his head. “Why are they called knights?”

“Honestly, I don’t know. I’ve never been close enough with one to ask.”

“Are you two done yet?” They turned to see Alva staring at them with her arms up, expression: annoyed. Maeri slapped her again, “ow!”

“We’re right behind you.”

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

Finally, they reached a summit and it was absolutely magnificent. There was a pool of clear water, the stones glimmering beneath the surface at the bottom of the little lake. The trees huddled around it, successfully secluding it from its surroundings. “Well,” Alva turned to Nidho, “don’t you guys want to cool off after that climb?” She stripped herself of her boots and stepped into the lake. She walked a little into the shallows before approaching a large rock protruding from the water. She patted it, Nidho removed his shoes and followed her. He sat back on the rock, giving her room to climb atop his lap. Maeri and Lukell followed suit, stepping into the shallow water with a shiver or two. Lukell sat on a similar rock near Alva’s and Nidho’s.

Maeri walked to his side, “may I sit with you as they are?” She nudged her head in the direction of her friends.

Lukell smiled, “of course.” The feeling of her settling atop him was unparalleled -- well, when she had done so before. This position didn’t leave him quite as vulnerable but he was certainly more aroused than he normally would like to be in public. It didn’t help that she scooted back to fully lean against him, rubbing her ass against his length in the process. He wasn’t uncomfortable like he had expected. 

She turned her body to side, sitting sideways and draping her arm across his shoulders. After a short detour of a kiss she whispered to him, “thank you Luka.” As his nickname slipped from her lips his heart jumped. She had yet to use it. He filled with warmth, he hadn’t heard that word from a mouth other than his own in years. In one swift motion, he lifted her arm off of his shoulder and turned her to be facing forward with him again. He wrapped his arms around her middle and pulled her to him, burying his head in the crook in her neck. He hummed into her skin, taking note of the goosebumps he felt race immediately thereafter. After the shock wore off she laid her arms on his, looking to her friends. “Why did you guys want to talk?” Maeri asked.

“Well...” Luka looked up, moving to rest his chin on her shoulder. Nidho looked at Alva with restrained excitement, he waited for her. After a moment of consideration she bit her lip and nodded slowly. She looked down, she looked happy but it was tinged, tainted with something else. “We’ve been discussing what might happen if Alva was to be with child.”

Maeri gasped, removing her hands from Luka’s arms to cover her mouth. “She is!?”

“No!” Alva cut in. “I am not.”

“Yet!” Nidho cheerfully added, hugging Alva close. “I can’t wait until she is though.”

“So you’ve decided to start trying?” Lukell asked, aiming the question more to Alva.

“Not quite.” She answered, “but we’re considering it.”

“She doesn’t want our baby to be alone,” Nidho added. “She wants him- or her- to have a friend.” He raised his brows at Maeri and Lukell. 

His mouth immediately dried, “uh...” He tried and failed, burying his head in Maeri’s neck again.

“Wha- um...” Maeri also failed.

Nidho yelped as Alva elbowed him in the ribs. “Stop that!” She grabbed his face in her hands and smushed it, “why do you always have to say something!”

He looked up at her blankly before breaking into laughter, “I don know.” She let go of his face and shook his head in disapproval.

“That was not what I meant,” she returned to the still stunned couple. “I said I would like to wait until you two OR” she turned to Nidho, “someone else we knew was CLOSE to considering it themselves!” She scowled at him but he didn’t see, his head had dropped in laughter.

“Oh...” Maeri spoke slowly, as if the air were as thick as it felt to Lukell. “That’s uh… that’s different.” Lukell snorted, keeping his head down and resisting the chuckle that had been bubbling since Nidho was revealed.

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

The group hung out for a while, mostly discussing trivial things. Eventually, they decided to return. They were heading toward Alva’s farmhouse when a jaunty voice called after them. “Hey! Wait up!” They stopped.

Alva was the first to turn, “Ald- oh.” Maeri froze, Lukell looked to her. In the split second, neither of them had turned but they both knew who stood behind them. He watched as determination beat down and defeated the fear in her eyes. She spun on her heel in slow motion, turning to face many of her recent nightmares. He quickly turned after her, wrapping an arm protectively around her shoulders and holding her close.

“Hey guys,” Nidho called back. 

It wasn’t just Felaks. A girl with bright blonde hair and blue eyes was in toe, her ponytail bouncing with each step. She scoffed in disgust, “guys?” she mocked, “do I look like a man to you?”

“It’s just slang.” Nidho winced. 

She groaned, “baby, why are we here?”

Felaks patted her on the head in a gross display of dominance. “I wanted to catch up with these friends.” He looked at Maeri, “it should be fun.” Lukell somehow managed to hold her closer. His eyes met his, “oh. Lukell… right?” He grit his teeth and nodded. “This is Cloji, she is with me.” The girl smirked with an infuriating wave.

“She seems to ask good questions...” Lukell muttered. 

“I was wondering about you,” Felaks answered again. He stepped forward, standing in front of the two girls. “Especially you two...” He flicked his eyes between them, settling on Maeri with a wink, “although I’m sure you’re good...”

Lukell snarled but before he could tear into the tall blonde Maeri had whipped a right hook across his face. “Hey!” Cloji yelled, running forward to claw at Maeri. She was quickly removed from the action by Alva with a swift kick and a punch to the stomach. Lukell tackled Felaks to the ground and began pounding punch after punch against his face. 

“HEY!” A loud voice boomed from nearby, “HEY STOP THAT!” Lukell was torn from Felaks and thrown aside. “You!?” The voice was angrier, “STAY AWAY FROM HERE!” Felaks stood and ran, Cloji by his side. Lukell finally looked up to see Alva’s dad staring after the blondes, his fists clenched. He turned to Alva, “we told you to stay away from them!”

“They came to us!” She reasoned, “they just showed up!”

“It’s true,” Nidho confirmed. 

Her father groaned. Maeri had come to Lukell’s side at some point. Alva’s father turned to them, “you two, go back home.” She nodded, helping Lukell to his feet.


	19. Tie it up for me?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for missing last Saturday! I was away from home and couldn't find the time to put together a new chapter. If it's any consolation, this one is a little longer than they typically are!
> 
> Uh... skip if you're not into smut lol

When Maeri and Lukell returned to her farmhouse they opted to leave Felaks out of their answer to Tomin’s “how was your day?” As they ate they carefully sidestepped the topic in favor of discussing Tomin and Julaeka’s day. Apparently, Julaeka learned how to make soda bread. Eventually, they wrap up with the food and head off to bed, Tomin to his and the younger three in Maeri’s recently expanded bed. Julaeka crawled onto the side of the bed, Lukell curled protectively around her smaller body with a few inches of perimeter. Maeri watched them sink into position before laying on the other side of Luka, her hand sliding down his stomach as she wrapped her arms around him. She leaned up and lightly kissed the back of his neck, reveling in the goosebumps it elicits. He sighed, she tucked her head against his back.

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

“How would you feel about eating dinner in the cave?” Maeri’s head tilted slightly, looking back as she asked. 

Lukell quirked a brow, “sure, but why?”

“I don’t know,” she turned back to her weaving some teal flax into a new fabric. “Alva was telling me about these meals her and Nidho would have and I thought it might be fun.” 

He hummed, “okay.” He moved from his position sitting on her bed and stood behind her, sitting his chin on her shoulder. “So what are you making?”

She chuckled, “just a thing.”

“Just a thing,” he mocked. She pouted, swatting at his face with a free hand. He laughed and kissed her shoulder, pressing his face into the crook of her neck. “Sorry!” His voice vibrated against her skin. 

She shook her head. “Go tell my father to teach Julaeka how to make another kind of bread.” 

He laughed into her neck, planting a kiss on it before fully separating from her skin. “Okay.” He kissed her cheek and left the room. “Hey,” he walked up to Tomin who was still finishing up his breakfast, “Maeri wanted to have dinner in the cave.”

Tomin’s brows furrowed as Lukell sat before him, “but I can’t fit in th-” He looked up to see Lukell’s face. “Oh,” he chuckled, “I’ll eat with your sister then?” Lukell nodded. “Ok...” he looked down at his plate and mused, “maybe I could teach her a new loaf...” 

Lukell chuckled as he stood, “whatever works.”

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

The boat tapped against the small shore by the cave entrance. Maeri jumped out and pulled out the small basket of food she had catered. “Tie it up for me?” She nodded to the rope in the boat, Luka nodded. She slipped in the cave while he did so. When he entered the cave he found her sitting on the floor, back to him, setting out their food on a little blanket she had brought along. “Sit... there!” She pointed to a spot in front of that large rock he had noticed before. Not minding something to lean on he happily obliged. He reached for the food but she quickly swatted him away, “I’m not done!”

He chuckled, “sorry.” He raised his hands in surrender and sat back. She pulled everything from the basket and moved it aside, pausing to admire her work. He reached out again for a particularly tasty-looking chunk of chicken but was swatted away. “What now?” He teased.

She pursed her lips in thought, “I want to show you something?”

“Okay?” He leaned back against the rock again. She crawled over to him, the tightness of the material wrapped around her outlining every muscle as she slunk forward. When she arrived before him she sat up on her knees, legs parted. Her fingers slid down his cheek, her other hand tangling in his hair. She sat back on her heels, watching him carefully as she reached behind her. The red fabric around her torso loosened. Luka’s mouth dried as he realized what she was doing. He glanced behind her quickly to confirm that he had replaced the entrance cover. They were hidden from the outside world. His eyes eagerly returned to Maeri’s slim figure as she held one end of the ribbon-like fabric. She bit her lip as she slowly unwrapped herself, switching hands occasionally as she removed the entirety of the fabric from blocking her chest. 

Lukell restrained himself, barely able to stay relatively still as he admired her. He wanted her. He hardly even noticed the growing tightness in his pants as he leaned toward her. He reached out, palming her left breast. He massaged it, slipping his thumb over her hardening nipple. Her moan urged him forward but she did him the favor of closing the distance. His hand remained as she straddled him, continuing to caress her as she kissed him fiercely. He couldn’t deny the greed in his kiss back. His other hand slipped into her hair, tugging slightly. Every noise leaving her lips spurring Luka, forming a beautiful harmony line. He was desperate to hear her sing the melody. He felt her hands on his, slowly pushing at them. The one in her hair moving less reluctantly than the one on her breast, which blatantly refused to budge. She pulled away from his lips to whisper into his ear, her voice carried by her hot breath. “Please...” Her plea was simply irresistible. 

His hand fell limp against hers, his lips moving to her neck. She moaned when pampered a particular spot, his eyes were closed but he could’ve sworn they rolled back. He was so focused on the sound he hardly felt his hands being moved. It wasn’t until he tried to pull her closer that he noticed. He lifted his head, it lolled back slowly as he looked at her with dazed eyes and a confused expression. He kept his knitted brows facing hers as he attempted to move his hands again. His head began darting around in confusion, Maeri’s smirk only furthering his concern. He looked over his shoulder, just barely able to see his hands. The back of his wrists were pressed together, tied in place by the fabric she had just removed from her chest. Restricted by what had just pleasured him so. She had carved a chunk of the rock into a hook, his hands were trapped and completely immobile. He looked back to her with an adorable mix of confusion, intrigue, and slight fear. 

She laughed a sexy and intimidating cackle. “Luka...” His stomach flipped at the nickname and the melodic register she spoke in. He gasped,  _ how could she have such an effect with one word? _ “Sorry if I surprised you...” she looked down sheepishly, “you said you worried that you couldn’t control yourself...” Her eyes met his, dark blue and lustful in the dimly lit cave. “I thought I might take control.” Luka licked his lips. Her smirk returned as she leaned toward him. 

“Please...” It was his turn to beg, he couldn’t move forward, he couldn’t use his hands, his words were one of the few things he still had. “What-” His breath had gotten much heavier, “what are you going to do to me?”

She moved away from him, “nothing you won’t enjoy.” Her breasts weren’t too large but they still bounced slightly as she shifted away from him. She stroked his length through the fabric of his pants. He moaned, rolling his head as he got comfortable against the stone. She made quick work of his pants, he lifted his hips and they were already gone. He hardly had time to notice the cold rock beneath his legs when she absorbed the entirety of his focus. She smirked up at him once more before looking to his fully erect cock. Not one to brag, Luka would never describe the image of his long thick dick curving slightly toward the top, but he couldn’t repress the filth his mind was shuffling through at the moment. As he watched her lick along his length he thanked God -- or Odin or whatever made him this way -- for giving him such a long show. She took her time. It was excruciating, incendiary, and so damn seductive he was surprised he hadn’t come already.

She kisses his tip lightly, gently sliding her tongue across it before slipping about an inch or two between her lips. His moan was instantaneous. She looked up at him, his cock still partially in her mouth. She looked gorgeous as she grinned in confidence, her eyes twinkling. She took in more of him, slowly bobbing her head to a rhyme. She had nearly reached his base, each nod now sliding his dick down her throat, his tip gliding against the tight, wet tunnel and erupting in explosions of pleasure that resonated until the next. She coughed, choking a little as she tried to take his entirety. This repeated, small tears starting to form at the edges of her eyes. “Hey...” Luka tried to reach for her but he was restrained, “you don’t have to do this.” She flicked her eyes in his direction and donned a look of pure determination. Her lips met the base of his cock, she stopped to breathe and spoil his tip. She slid his entirety into her mouth once again, twice. The sensation was indescribable. It felt incredible. Each bob of her head drove him wild, he restrained himself from bucking up. He knew she wanted full control, so he tried verbal affirmations; “you’re amazing Maeri...” She moaned, her throat vibrating against the sensitive skin of his dick. He nearly wailed, biting his lip in a mix of pain and pleasure. 

He felt himself rising, his mind feeling as though it were bubbling as his cock began to drip. She moaned again, this time her throat tightened around him ever so slightly. He exploded into her mouth. She slowly pulled herself off, careful to lap up every drop of cum. The sight of which nearly made him come again. She stood after a moment, wiping her lips and walking behind him. His arms fell to his sides as she freed them. He quickly used them to pull up his pants and lift himself off of the ground. When he faced her she was already wrapped her fabric around her torso again. He rushed to her side and scooped her into a hug. 

\--)-(----)-(--

He mumbled into her hair, “you’re the most extraordinary girl, Maeri.” 

She giggled, “you’re just lustful.” She tried to finish her top but Luka's body was blocking her. She wriggled in his grip but he just held her tighter. 

“Nope!” 

She shook her head, “let me go! I need to tie my shirt back up.”

“Hmmm...” He hummed into the top of her head, “I don’t know. I kind of like you like this.” She scowled.

“Can we at least eat?”

“Mmhmm!” He started to shuffle toward her set up, still coiled around her.

“Luka!” He chuckled as she whined. “Let me gooooo!”

“Mmmmm...” he stopped moving. “No.” He continued.

Once they arrived he promptly picked her up and sat down, placing her in his lap. “I'll never be free...” she moped teasingly. Luka laid his head on her shoulder. She turned to see his face, a dopey smile stretching across it as his dazed eyes blinked at her. She planted a quick kiss on his lips. “Are you ready to eat?”

He pursed his lips in thought, his arms shifting. One lay across her stomach, the other was on an incline. “Well,” he tried to subtly take hold of her right boob, “my hands are a bit full right now…” She shook her head as he grinned at her, “I think you might need to feed me.”

Maeri scoffed, “okay.” She tore off a chunk of bread and hand-delivered it to his mouth. He took it with his teeth, closing his lips around her fingers briefly. She shuddered and scoffed again as a cover-up. She dropped a strip of chicken into her mouth, swallowing it soon after. She was reaching for some more to feed to Luka when she nearly fell limp. 

He started kissing her neck as he lightly pinched her nipple, his other hand swiftly venturing between her legs, just grazing her sensitive spot. The unexpected combination at the same time made her dizzy, she sunk against his chest with a sharp exhale. He chuckled into her neck. “Sorry...” he muttered bashfully. Her head lolled back against his right shoulder, his still lay on her left. He stroked her through the fabric of her pants again, short-circuiting her mind even more. Her ribbon of a top had pooled around her waist, leaving her chest completely bare as he played with it. He stroked her a few more times, thumbing her nipple. He switched hands so that her other breast got some attention. All the while he kissed up her neck and jaw, nibbling on her ear and whispering to her. “You’re so perfect,” he’d say, hoarse and breathy, “let me pamper you.”

After he had gotten her all buzzed, he finally slipped his hand into her pants. He stroked along her labia, soaking his hands in the flood he had caused. He was moving infuriatingly slow. “Luka… please...” She huffed, he tsked at her.

“Be patient.” He played with her clit a little more, rubbing circles, pinching ever so slightly, his other hand behaving similarly with her nipple. Finally, he slowly slipped a finger into her, its tip, rough and hardened, grazing her walls in a tantalizing tease. Her moan started to shift to a whine as he refused to hasten. 

He was taking too long, she had to try something. She took his head and moved it so she could whisper to him, “you’re big, thick cock tasted so good.” He groaned, she continued. “As it stuffed my throat I could only fantasize about the feeling of it buried within me elsewhere...” It worked, her lust spurred his finger to move at a reasonable pace. He thrust it into her, finding the rhythm that suited her fancy. He settled on one that had her humming consistently. He carefully slipped his second finger into her, the small stretch heightening her desire. Her reaction awarded her a slightly faster pace as she began moaning for him. Begging him to continue and move faster. His thumb circled her clit for a brief moment, she was losing her mind. When he curled his fingers she truly went crazy. She began singing his name as he managed to plunge them deeper and deeper inside of her. She felt herself tightening around his fingers as an intense warmth began to fill her. “Luka!” She shouted in a tangled clash of a moan and a gasp, straightening up. She felt as if her every nerve was exploding. He continued for a short while at a much slower pace, helping her fall gracefully from heaven.

She fell back into him again with a sigh. Her breast heaved as he planted a trail of kisses down her neck and shoulder. “I adore you...” his voice was thick with love, “now… I’m hungry!”


	20. Who knows?

Lukell was carving small figurines for Julaeka, interviewing her to cater their designs to her wishes. Tomin went to town for more food and Maeri was sitting at the table, weaving together some flax on her mini-loom. Julaeka was describing the hair of figure 3 when there was a rapp or two at the door. Lukell hardly even looked up, resuming with Julaeka and assuming Maeri would answer. There was no sound for a few moments and then there were a few more knocks. Lukell looked over his shoulder to Maeri, she looked frozen. Her eyes flicked up from where they had been focused on her work, focusing on him. Lukell started to lift himself from the ground with a concerned expression but Maeri immediately stopped him with a swift hand motion and a small smile. He turned back to Julaeka, carving the ponytail into the chunk of wood in his hand. 

The clatter of wood against the floor drew his attention away from Julaeka again. His eyes quickly ran to the image; Maeri stood before the doorway, her weaving and it’s wooden loom still bouncing slightly from the ground. Aldarin was just outside of the door, his face uneasy edging on distressed. Lukell leaped from the floor, carefully pacing his carving knife out of the reach of Julaeka and rushing to Maeri’s side. As he moved he realized what had happened.

Lukell spun Maeri toward him, holding her close and cradling her head against his chest. She stood still, only moving slightly to collapse into him. Aldarin started but Lukell quickly shook his head cautiously. “Hey...” Lukell whispered into her hair, “talk to me… do you want to go somewhere?” Maeri shook her head violently.

“N-n-not him.” She struggled to speak but refused to give in to her fears. He sighed, admiring her dexterity but worrying intensely for her.

“Okay, okay.” He pressed a reassuring him onto her head before finally turning his attention to Aldarin.

“Is she- did I do something?” His voice was shaky with misplaced guilt.

Lukell shook his head slowly, “no, you did nothing.”

“But-”

“I’m. Fine.” Maeri turned back to her friend, keeping herself safely buried within Lukell’s grip. 

“But-”

“So, Aldarin,” Lukell cut in, “what brings you over?”

“Oh, uh,” He scratched the back of his head. “I wanted to see if you wanted to join Nidho and I on our hunt today?”

“Oooh!” Maeri’s voice floated up into Lukell’s ears. “A  _ man-hunt _ ?!” His eyebrow rose questioningly at Aldarin.

He sighed, “that’s what the ladies call it. We just try to bag a deer for a group bonfire.” Maeri giggled and Aldarin groaned, “we always offer to them but they always want to leave us to our ‘man-hunt.’”

Lukell chuckled, “alright. I’ll come along. Just allow me some time to arrange my sister’s day and such.” 

Aldarin nodded, “of course! I’ll sit-” he eyes settled on Maeri for a moment, “I’ll wait outside, Alva and Nidho are supposed to be here soon.” With a stiff smile he closed the door on himself.

\--)-(----)-(--

Maeri fully collapsed, Lukell barely managing to catch her so unexpectedly. Her heart pounded throughout her body, filling her ears and pulsating against every inch of skin. She felt weak, her body failed to hold her up. 

The weaving, the knocking, that face. The weaving, the knocking, Aldarin. From that first rapp on the door her heart began beating upon her gut. It drew and stole the energy from elsewhere within her, freezing her every muscle. When she had noticed Lukell she was able to redistribute her strength, acknowledging the difference. But she opened the door, she opened the door and she stood once again. Weaving in hand, staring into that face. His sandy hair splayed about his skull. His green eyes staring into hers. She saw the concern, not the malice, but the rest was too similar. Atop the pain of her heart stopping she reprimanded herself for the stupidity of it all. She knew this wasn’t him. She knew it wasn’t happening again. She felt insurmountably ignorant for her sudden fear and vulnerability.

Luka’s arms closed around her, his scent filled her nostrils, his hands carefully cradling her fragility. When her heart restarted it pounded at her from within. His chest played his heart’s tune in an instinctual attempt to soothe hers. It helped. She turned to her friend, swallowing her horror. Staring at him, her heart rate rose again violently kneading every muscle. Lukell’s rhythm was more distant without her ear to it. As soon as Aldarin left her heart retreated from its hostile jitters, leaving her muscles sore and immobile. She crumpled.

She could hear Luka’s voice somewhere in the distance, as if he spoke to her through a watery barrier. She felt a breeze against her cheek. Her eyes were open but she couldn’t see. The world was blurred and surreal. She touched something soft, she laid in something soft. There was a feeling against her cheek, something she recognized. Her pupils began to size up the room, she focused. Luka’s eyes were buried in hers, digging for her conscious. His hand was on her cheek, between her skin and the pillow, his thumb rubbing against her skin. His lips were pressed together in a terribly thin grimace. He was close to her but he hadn’t coiled around her like he typically would. They were laying on their sides facing each other, his other arm delicately placed on her side. 

Her eyes drifted upward. Julaeka was behind Lukell’s shoulders, her hands laid on his side, her chin sat atop her hands. Her eyes were wide and worried, small tears streaming down from them. “Est-ce qu’elle va bien?” Her voice was small and shaky, Lukell’s face looked up at his sister. In her state, Maeri’s mind took a moment to translate.  _ She wonders if I’m okay… _

“Je ne sais pas, Jules. Je ne sais pas ce qu’elle a besoin, je ne sais pas comment l’aider.”  _ He doesn’t know… he doesn’t what what to do… _ “Tu devrais jouer dans l’autre pièce,”  _ he wants her to go play in the other room…  _ Julaeka’s face grew red with anger, “j’attendrai pour-”

“Non! Je veux rester!”  _ She wants to stay… _

“Jules, ce sera ennuyeux de toi. C’est d’accord si tu joue-”

“Non! Je reste.”  _ She wants to stay… _ “Ses yeux bougent!” Luka’s eyes snapped back to hers, searching them for any signs of life. Maeri’s mouth wouldn’t move, she looked back at him pleadingly.

He lunged forward and scooped her into his grip, snaking around her. “It’s okay,” he quietly spoke to her, “it’s okay. You don’t have to talk, you don’t have to move.” His fingers brushed through her hair. She couldn’t help but feel exhausted and his touch was only lulling her further. “I can stay. I won’t go with the boys, I’ll stay with you okay?” 

Maeri tried to move, she weakly shook her head. Her lips parted as she finally managed a sound, “no.” 

“But, Maeri-”

“No.”

“I don’t want to leave you like this. I refuse.” 

She slowly pushed herself back so she could see his eyes. “I will be okay. Alva is coming, I won’t be alone. And you,” she weakly patted Julaeaka’s head, “you’ll be with me too.”

“I don’t need to go.”

“Yes,” she pushed herself up and sat against the headboard. “You must. You need to know them better.” Lukell sat up with her, taking her hands in his. “You must go for Aldarin, he cannot suffer more for what his brother does.”

“He will survive.”

“You don’t understand.” Maeri finally got bearings of her tone, delivering her words matter-of-factly. “He cannot suffer more for what his brother does, it is unfair to him.”

Lukell sighed, kissing her knuckles slowly. “Okay...” 

Julaeka climbed onto her lap and hugged her. Maeri gently whipped aside her tears, “thank you Julaeka.” The toddler beamed.

\--)--)--(--(--

The boy trio found a small clearing in the woods and sat for a short while. “So, Lukell,” Aldarin began, “how have you liked it here? Do you like Heillstaðr?”

Lukell nodded, “yes. The landscape is quite beautiful too, it’s very different from my village.”

“How big was your village?” Nidho jumped in.

“It was pretty small, smaller than Heillstaðr. There were no big halls like you have here and our homes were a little smaller as well.”

“Interesting,” he mused, “Alva told me you are orphaned?”

“Nidho!” Aldarin slapped him.

“It’s okay!” Lukell exclaimed, “it is true.”

“My mother died when my brother, Cris, was born. I have incredible respect for my father, he never shied from doing what most men would deem motherly tasks, he never remarried either. I was always happy to help with Cris too. He had a rough phase but now he is much better.” Nidho laughed, “I’m sure you have a similar relationship with your sister.” Lukell chuckled with a nod. “I believe that was what drew Alva to me, you know. She saw me playing with Cris once and from that point on seemed far more interested in me.”

Aldarin scoffed, “have you ever asked her what drew her to you?”

“Hmm...” Nidho pondered, “that might be a good idea.” The boys laughed. “Honestly, I have. She told me there was no particular thing but I still believe that was the moment she began considering me that way.”

Lukell chuckled, “who knows?” 

“Well, technically she should...” 

After another quick laugh Nidho resumed, “we are lucky too. Alva’s sister Oddlaug is about the same age as Cris.”

“Yes, and Rosik is the same age as Julaeka.” Lukell mused.

“She has a sister for everything!” Aldarin teased but his tone was still a tinge somber. “Any more progress on your child?” He looked to Nidho.

He shook his head, “perhaps, perhaps not. Even if she is with child now we may not know for a while.” He sighed, “it’s such a fickle thing.”

Aldarin’s brows knit, “you mean unpredictable? It’s not quite the same-”

“No. I mean  _ she _ . She can be so flighty.” He groaned, shaking his head in his hands before returning to the conversation. “I don’t mean that she is irresponsible or unreliable or anything of that sort but… she confuses me.”

“How so?” Lukell gently pried.

“It seems as though she wants to do this, she’s normally excited when we talk about it. But then sometimes she gets all quiet or uncomfortable and ever since we discussed she been more hesitant with sex. I don’t understand!” He rubbed his forehead, “Lukell, surely you saw what I’m referring to when we told you and Maeri.”

“Well she never said you were actively trying for a child, she said you were considering.”

Aldarin gasped, “is this true?” Nidho sheepishly nodded, “you told me you were already planning on it!”

“Well we are! I am!” He groaned, “yes, we are considering. She always says her only reservation is the child’s loneliness but she acts as if there’s something else! Hardly any of us are the same age! Maeri and I have one less year than she does and we’re her closest people! But when I explain this she just shakes her head and says ‘but what if no one has a child a year after ours is born?’ and sometimes...” He looked down, “sometimes she brings my mother into it.”

“Nidho, I think I might know what she is struggling with.” Lukell began to explain, “I think she wants to have children with you but she is still very nervous about it. She doesn’t sound mad but rather uneasy.”

“So what do I do?” Nidho asked, “I’ve always wanted children. It’s my dream to be as great of a father as mine was.”

“Maybe, next time you’re talking to her, don’t ask whether or not, ask why. Like why are you nervous? How can I help?”

“Yeah...” Nidho swallowed, “I’ll try that, thank you.” He looked off to the side, “I just know she’s the perfect woman for me. She’s smart and funny and beautiful… and she would make a brilliant mother! She’s so great with all of her sisters.”

“Hmmm...” Lukell paused pensively, “ask her about that too.”

“Huh?”

“Ask her about her sisters, how she felt growing up with such a large family. I think it might be related to her nerves.”

Nidho looked up, “alright.” He turned back to Lukell, “thank you, man. If your advice gets me somewhere I will owe you big time!” He turned to Aldarin, who had been silent for a while. “Are you okay, Aldarin?”

“Hm?” He looked up, “oh, yeah.” He smiled weakly, “you know I’m very distant from all of that at the moment.”

“There’s someone for you.” Nidho offered, but Aldarin lightly swatted the comfort away.

“Even if there is I may never find them.” He sighed, “I don’t want to drag the conversation down.”

“Hey man,” Nidho patted his shoulder, “the conversation wasn’t too bright anyway. Have you talked to anyone lately?”

“Not really,” he admitted, “you’re usually the one I talk to about that stuff but you’ve been so excited with the child possibilities I never walked to bring myself up in a selfish move just to dampen the mood.” Nidho started to apologize but Aldarin quickly cut him off, “don’t be sorry! I’m extremely happy for you. I’ve also been fine lately anyway.”

Nidho exhaled sharply, “you don’t seem fine right now.”

“Well,” he looked up at Lukell, “did I offend Maeri?”

“What?” Nidho sat up, “did something happen?”

Lukell’s eyes widened, “oh! No!” He threw his hands up to wave off their suspicions. “You did nothing, Aldarin.”

“Then why was she acting that way this morning?”

“She-” Lukell mulled it over, “she’s going through something personal right now. I don’t want to speak for her. It’s not your fault at all, it was just the circumstances of your arrival that upset her.”

His brows furrowed, his lips tightly pressed. “Okay...”

“What does that mean?” Nidho probed.

“I just mean Aldarin did not upset her, something else did.” He turned to Aldarin, “please don’t feel guilty for it. She was very worried that she upset you.”

He shook his head, “I was just worried for her.”

“That is understandable. I’m sure she’ll explain it when she’s ready.”

He nodded. Nidho turned to him, “I’m worried about you, Aldarin. You act as if you have some evil side that just appears sometimes. You hear of something bad and you know you didn’t do it but you act as if you did.”

“I do! Nidho, I do have an evil side! He shares my voice and my face and does terrible things.”

“But that isn’t you!”

“It could be! He’s just older than me, that’s all! How long will it take for me to be the same?”

“He was always bad! You have always been good.”

Aldarin groaned, quickly turned his head to Lukell when he remembered he was there. “I’m so sorry. I really am okay.”

“It’s fine,” Lukell assured him. “I know I’m a bit of an outsider with everything but you truly seem to be nothing like your family.”

“Yeah...” he trailed off, “I like to think I’m like my mother. All of my memories of her are wonderful.”

“She…?”

“Maeri didn’t tell you?” Lukell slowly shook his head, “oh. Well I’m sure she’s mentioned what happened to her mother?”

“Yes.”

“Mine was taken as well, same night.”

“Oh...” Lukell pursed his lips in pity, “I’m sorry.”

“Me too...” he sighed, “my father didn’t want to listen when Alva and Maeri brought up their info to him but I have been collecting resources and such. I’m sure Maeri has been making more clothing lately?” Lukell slowly nodded,  _ that makes sense _ , he thought. “Hopefully, if they have the balls to come here again, we’ll be ready to destroy them.”

“We will be ready.” Nidho declared.

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

The boys had bagged a deer, dusk was arriving and they were heading home. Nidho diverged soonest, taking the deer with him as he waved goodbye. Aldarin and Lukell were walking alone. 

“Sorry if we sort of interrogated you about your village earlier...” Aldarin sheepishly apologized.

“It’s fine!” Lukell assured, “I understand, you’re intrigued.”

“Yes!” he exclaimed, “I am really drawn to the idea of a peaceful society, full of mixed cultures and all sorts of people!”

“If you want peace then why do you raid?” 

Aldarin kicked a pebble out of the way, “I need to to appease my family. All of my friends love it as well.” He turned to Lukell with a shrug, “we’re not the worst for it either. Maeri, Alva, Nidho and I? We always try to avoid hurting the people and only take what we must.”

“Yeah, you guys are definitely nicer than I would have assumed the Danes to be.”

He chuckled, “we’re not all like this though.” He cautioned, “don’t expect our kindness from everyone.”

Lukell laughed lightly, “I know, I know.” He patted the blondes’ shoulder, “thanks though.”

“Of course! You know, I was wonderin-” The was a loud snap in the woods beside them. The sound was unnatural and eerie, it shouldn’t have drawn their attention yet both boys immediately looked toward it. They looked at each other and shook their heads, laughing it off. Before they could continue forward there was another one, this time quickly followed by a rock tumbling before their feet. “Who’s there?” Aldarin called toward the sounds, “Felaks? Is that you?”

No sound.

“Whatever,” Aldarin muttered. They began to walk again but they were immediately stopped by an even louder snap and a rock, which hit Aldarin’s temple. “Who’s there!?”

No sound.

He growled, “come on. This is outrageous.” Aldarin marched into the woods with Lukell following just behind him.

“Why don’t we just get back?” He offered.

“If their too cowardly to show themselves then they’re too cowardly to cause us any real harm.”

“I-” Lukell was immediately cut off as something wrapped around his mouth. He was torn away by a set of hands and hidden beneath some brush. He was held still and silenced, unable to make the slightest noise. He couldn’t see either, his eyes were fully covered. He heard Aldarin release his absence.

“What? Lukell? Lukell, where did you go?” There was a long pause, his voice was thick and timid when it returned, “Lukell!? Shit. Shitshitshit.” Quick, heavy footsteps began, quickly fading into the distance. It was silent. Lukell continued to struggle against whatever had captured him.

Something slammed against his head.

He blacked out.


	21. Where is Luka?

Maeri was sitting on the floor and admiring Julaeka’s new figurines as she presented them to her. She didn’t say anything about them, quite as per usual, just held them out one at a time for Maeri to observe. She hadn’t quite comprehended it in the morning but as the day carried on Maeri realized that was the first time she had heard Julaeka speak. The toddler always opted for nonverbal communication, Maeri was truly astonished by her eloquence. She wore a particularly large smile as she presented the incomplete figure from this morning. It looked mostly right but it was clearly less polished than the rest. The small wooden figure resembled a short woman with a ponytail. As she looked at it Julaeka jumped up and ran behind her to pull at her hair. Before Maeri could complain, her attention was redirected by Julaeka’s finger, which was pointed to the figure's hair. Julaeka tugged her ponytail again, her wide eyes gleaming at Maeri’s. “This is me!?” She exclaimed to the toddler, pointing to herself with her free hand. Julaeka nodded proudly. Maeri quickly captured the child in a bone-crushing hug of appreciation, returning to the figure to admire every detail it gracefully adorned.

Her detailed observation was soon cut short by an abrupt series of frantic knocks on the door. When she looked up her father was already at the door. When he opened it Aladrin burst inside, panting. He immediately met eyes with Maeri, whose heart rate had already risen with the startling knocks. “What’s wrong, son?” Tomin went to pat his shoulder but Aldarin darted away, slumping at the table and dropping his head into his hands.

“I’m so sorry, Maeri. I’m so sorry, I’m so so sorry. I’m so sorry, Maeri, I’m sorry.” He mumbled against his palms just barely audibly. Maeri gently passed the figure back to Julaeka and sat beside Aldarin. She didn’t touch him.

“What happened?” She began, “where’s Lukell?”

“I’m so sorry, Maeri...” his voice was thick and wet, moist with what was running down his cheeks and dripping from between his fingers to the floor. “I’m sorry...”

Maeri’s fear began lifting her frustration, “what happened?” Her typically calming softness sharpening into a pointed question.

Aldrin turned to her, his eyes wide and red. “We were r-returning and someone threw rocks at us and we w-went into the woods and then he was gone!”

“What do you mean gone!? Who!? Who was throwing rocks!?!” She grew angrier with each question, he was being too vague.  _ How could he lose him!? _

“We didn’t see! That’s why we went into the woods and then I turned around he was gone!” She was so detached from her face, Maeri didn’t release she was glaring at him. “It all happened so fast! I’m sorry!!”

“How could you do this!?” Her voice was inflamed with fury, her words burning into Aldarin’s ears. In a brief moment she watched through his eyes as he nearly broke in two. His eyes seemed to sink back into his head as their green faded to near grey. He looked gaunt, in one swift question she had confirmed him insecurities and murdered whatever hope he had left. Her anger morphed to pure remorse and sadness. Without thinking she pulled him into a strong, warm hug. “I’m sorry, Aldarin, it’s not your fault.”

“It is...” he looked down. 

“No son,” Tomin added, “it really isn’t.”

Maeri turned his chin toward her and stared into his eyes. “Take me to where it happened and we will look together.” She watched as a small light began to flicker in his eyes, illuminated the dingy grey back to its normal green. He nodded, slowly hoisting himself up from the table. “Father,” her fear began to return but she tried desperately to subdue it for Julaeka’s sake. She looked at the toddler, she hadn’t budged from the floor just staring up at them with a confused expression.

“I will.” Tomin patted Maeri on the shoulder and sat down beside Julaeka.

She turned to Aldarin. “Show me where.”

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

“Are you sure this is it?” Maeri’s voice was strained, she couldn’t bear to break her friend's fragile heart again but she was losing her patience.

“Yes...” The sun was nearly fully set and it was incredibly hard to see. Lukell was nowhere to be found. The pair had looked around trees and tried to point out broken foliage but the task was near impossible in the lighting. 

“He’s not here...” she sat down on a fallen log, cradling her head in her hands.

“We can keep looking! Maybe-”

“No. He isn’t here and we can hardly see.” The reality slowly sunk in, the air seemed to thicken with it. She stood, they knew it was hopeless to continue at that moment but neither wanted to say it. They slowly returned to the road, soon parting ways as she sprinted back home, eager to escape the dark.

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

When she opened the door she was met with loud sobbing and near screaming. Her father sat at the table, his head in his hands, wailing as Julaeka pounded the floor and screamed at him. “What’s going on??”

Tomin looked up at her with puffy eyes and tear-soaked cheeks, “I don’t understand her!”

“What?” Maeri ran toward them, staring at her dad with confusion.

“I don’t understand her!”

“What do you mean? What is she saying?”

“I don’t know! I’ve forgotten the Frankish language since I stopped raiding!”

“Wait, but- she-” Maeri suddenly realized she had never heard Julaeka speak her language, she had just assumed the child didn’t like speaking, not that she didn’t know how. “But you’ve been teaching her recipes!”

“I was just showing her! She never spoke!” 

Maeri panicked. Lukell was gone. Completely vanished. Julaeka didn’t understand a word they were saying. Maeri wasn’t sure she could even remember French. She could, she understood this morning. Could she? Could she calm Julaeka down? How does one calm a panicking toddler who’s only living relative has just gone missing!? She started hyperventilating but she tried to calm herself. She turned to Julaeka. She tried to pick her up but she screamed louder in protest, scrambling away from her hands. “Julaeka! Talk to me!” She screamed. “Parle moi! S’il vous plaît, Julaeka, parle moi!” _ I can. _

The toddler sobbed, “Oú est Luka?” She pleaded, begging Maeri. “Oú est Luka?”  _ Where  _ is _ Luka!? Where could he be!?! _

She couldn’t take it anymore, Maeri began bawling. Tears raced down her cheeks as her heartfelt like a knife had been wedged into it. “Je ne sais pas...” She hugged Julaeka to her chest and rocked back and forth. They sat for a few moments, the lone sound of sobbing filling the room. “Nous le trouverons. Je te promets.”  _ We will find him.  _

\--)-(----)-(--

When Lukell came to he could still see nothing, there was a cloth tied around his eyes. His mouth, too, has blocked. His wrists and ankles were tied together and he was tied to something. He wriggled to no avail but did not stop trying. He groaned, belting guttural screams at whatever blocked them. He only struggled more when he was kicked in the stomach, and again, and again. Although, he stopped after 5 blows against his gut. “Stop struggling,” a menacing voice crept into his ears, “I won’t hurt you,” her tone was maliciously sweet. He grunted as a boot collided with his stomach again, “much.” He heard a couple of footsteps before they seemed to stop. “You are very pretty, you know.” Her voice was inches from him. He spat through the fabric, growling at her. “Stop that. It’s not like I’ll keep you like this forever. I just need you to bring her to me.” 

Lukell stilled, every muscle frozen.  _ What did this woman want?  _

“I know that you’re wondering what I mean.” She giggled, “and I don’t think I’ll explain further.” 

Lukell could hear her standing and beginning to walk away, he frantically tried to spit out the cloth. He yelled some form of ‘wait!’ at her, her halted footsteps indicated his success. 

“Now… be reasonable.” The cloth was loosened and removed, he still couldn’t see but at least he could try to gain a better understanding of his situation.

“Why?” He panted, “why do you need her? Why use me?”

She cackled, “darling...” She stuffed his mouth again, this time completely muting him. “Have neither of you ever considered why I took her mother?” 

Her footsteps slowly moved away, each step like a stab wound. He writhed and screamed for her to return but it was all futile.


	22. Want him back?

Maeri could hardly sleep. The only thing keeping her from tossing and turning was her protective hold on Julaeka. She stared at the door to her bedroom in the eerie silence. Her eyes had adjusted to the dark hours ago, so now, as she lay on her side, her mind racing ever further from slumber, she could just make out the grooves of the wood. The lines formed a rough shape; a face. A square jawline with softened corners, a small smile wedged between lips, slightly thin. A tall, defined nose sat above it, almond eyes on either side of its bridge. The forehead of the face was partially covered by wooden strokes in the shape of shaggy locks, two thin brows peaking through. 

As she stared, the colors of the wood began to morph. The shades emphasized the features. The hair grew darker, the lips grew lighter. Soon Lukell was gazing back at her, his eyes were walnut rather than blue, his lips a red-ish birch rather than pink. He smiled at her, his eyes squinting slightly in adoration. She wished to reach for him, to caress those cheeks, run her fingers over his soft lips. She smiled back at him instead. 

His face began to change, it stretched, widened, shrunk, it fluctuated with unnerving speed. His grin grew daunting, his brows sneering at her. She shuddered, swallowing hard. The face was now misshaped, it looked terribly unnatural. It continued to change rapidly, occasionally forming a more human face, she recognized each but only a few she could place. There was a glimpse of a woman, a flash of man, for a second she saw Felaks’ wicked smirk as it horrifically morphed into her mother’s proud beam. She squeezed her eyes shut.

In the blank darkness of her eyelids, a silhouette grew. It was dark, barely noticeable. It was distant, it walked slowly but moved toward her quickly. A twisted, horrid grin eerily stretched across its face as it approached her. Its size grew rapidly until its darkness consumed her vision. She plunged into pitch black once again. Her eyes frantically split open. As if on cue rain began pouring, beating mercilessly against her roof. She felt tears pooling in the corners of her eyes. She turned her face into her pillow and sobbed into it, trying to stay as quiet as possible as to not wake Julaeka. 

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

Maeri sat at the table with Julaeka at her side, they both stared at their full plates. Tomin sat across from them, looking to the pair pleadingly. “Girls...” He weakly begged, “just eat a little...” Maeri tore her eyes from the bread and focussed them on Julaeka. She faintly resembled Lukell. Her face and eyes were round and circular, her cheeks plump despite her skinny physique. Her nose was smaller and more flat against her face. They shared the same thin pale pink lips. Regardless of all of these differences, they were clearly related, she looked at her and she could see him. 

Gently, she tore off a small chunk of the quarter loaf on her plate. She held it up to the toddler, “Julaeka.” The child sighed and weakly plucked the food from Maeri’s fingers before slowly placing it on her tongue. As she began to tear a second piece their door swung open.

“Maeri!” Alva barreled through the doorway and wrapped her arms around her. “Aldarin told me!” She leaned against her friend.

“Thank you, Alva.” 

She pulled away and rubbed her shoulders, “what do you want to do? My day is empty. I want to help you.”

“I want to go back to the spot with Aldarin, you can come.” Julaeka tugged at Maeri’s arm,  _ no, she can’t see anything _ . “Non, tu ne peux pas.” She scowled, snarling at her. Her face contorted in fury. “Alva, can you bring Rosik over? I think Julaeka needs something to take her mind off of everything.” Julaeka’s face softened immediately at the sound of her friend’s name. She looked at Maeri quizzically. “Voudrais-vous jouer avec Rosik?” She paused before nodding slowly.

“Yes, of course, I will come right back.” They exchanged small smiles as Alva stood and moved toward the door.

“Thank you.”

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

When Alva returned with Rosik, Aldarin was close behind. As soon as she entered the farmhouse Rosik ran to Julaeka side. She threw her arms around her in a tight, loving embrace. Her small hands gently rubbing Julaeka’s back. In an astoundingly mature display of empathy, Rosik pulled away to lay Julaeka’s head on her shoulder. She ran her fingers through her hair. Seemingly from nowhere, Rosik procured a small wooden drum. She tapped it lightly and whispered to Julaeka, “want to play?” 

Maeri almost translated for the child but before she could she watched as Julaeka mimicked Rosik’s actions and tapped against the drum. She looked to her friend with glossy eyes and nodded. The entire interaction warmed Maeri’s heart.

“Aldarin, Alva,” Maeri finally turned to her friends, “are you ready?” They nodded. She exchanged glances with her father before walking outside and fetching her mare. With a quick, “ready Tikki?” she mounted her horse, avoiding any potential time wastage. The three galloped side-by-side, Maeri in the middle. A palomino stallion and two mares, one dark bay, the other more of a chestnut. They slowed to a trot as they approached the area of Lukell’s disappearance once again.

“Here,” Aldarin somberly pointed. They slid off of their horses and tethered them to a small clump of trees on the border of the woods. The group slowly crept between the trees, the women followed as Aldarin led the way. “We came in through her,” he looked over his shoulder, “he was the same distance from me that you are now.” They ventured a little while further before he stopped, “this is where I stood when I realized he was gone.” 

They moved to stand back to back, being sure to keep each other in sight they began to look through the area. It felt like forever, staring at trees and brush as if they would suddenly move or speak. Finally Alva gasped, “look!” She pointed to a pile of flattened moss and grass, it was a short distance from when they originally stood. In broad daylight it seemed so obvious but in the dimly lit evening of the night before it was practically nonexistent. Aldarin and Maeri briefly looked over his shoulders, Maeri crouched beside the patch. 

She gasped, her hands flying over her agape mouth. Across from her lay a small rock with a dark, brownish-red splotch and a single matching dried streak falling from it. She frantically grasped it and stared at the stain, desperately searching for anything to indicate it to be anything other than what she knew it was. “Blood...” she muttered. Just as her friends laid comforting hands on her shoulders they were startled by the sound of horses squealing.  _ Their horses squealing _ . They were spooked, bucking and shrieking from the edge of the woods. The three stood, without a word, running to the edge of the woods, the rock still tight in Maeri’s clutching fingers.

They crashed through the trees, catching the horses just as they began to calm. Each was quickly comforted by their riders. “What happened?” Aldarin asked.

“I don’t know,” Alva responded, “there must’ve been an animal or something.”

“No,” Maeri whispered.

Alva turned to her, “huh?”

“No.” She clutched the rock to her chest as she pointed to another. It was longer and flatter, more of a thin stone slab. It was painted with the same color as the other. Although, it was much less abstract. Thin, deliberate strokes spelled “want him back? -L.” Maeri’s eyes rung wildly. She squeezed eyes shut as the sound only crescendoed. She inhaled shakily. Her heart pounded in her ears. Her blood seemed to rush from one place in her body to another. She was light-headed. She felt wobbly. A pair of hands stabilized her, her head fell against a shoulder. 

“Maeri...” Aldarin whispered to her, holding her head. When she cracked her eyes open Alva was crouched beside the slab, investigating the letters. 

“He’s not here.” Alva said matter-of-factly. “Let’s go back to your house.” 

Maeri weakly attempted to hoist herself on her horse. “No,” Aldarin demanded. “No, you’re not in a state to ride.”

“I’m fine!” She snapped at him, the force of her words taking some of the energy she used to stand straight. She wobbled a little. 

“You can re-adjust your front on the way back, but you’re riding with me.” She sighed in defeat, watching meekly as Alva climbed onto her mare with the slab in hand. Aldarin lifted Maeri onto his stallion before mounting soon after, with Tikki’s tether wrapped around his hand. 

They trotted back to the farmhouse.

\--)-(----)-(--

With the loss of his sight, Lukell’s other senses had developed slightly overnight. Particularly his hearing; in the first few hours of his captivity he could hear people talking nearby, he could hear his captors movement right beside him. Now he heard every noise within and near the tent he was presumably in. He came to this conclusion after being awoken by the sound of a sudden and violent bout of rain the night before, a harsh and ominous drumming. He could hear it but felt no drops, only dampened from the moistening ground beneath him. When the rain woke him, some snoring had notified him of the presence of someone else in the tent, likely his captor. She talked with sickening confidence and poise, most definitely a leader.

Just as his hearing had begun to evolve it was overrun with a stabbing pain in his mind. The ache whistled in his ears, blocking out other noise so that he could barely hear outside of his head. It wasn’t the same pain from when he had been hit in the head the day prior, it was something else. His brain almost felt _ dry _ . At that very moment, he realized he hadn’t drunk since the morning before. He had forgotten a flask when he left with Aldarin and wasn’t thirsty enough to ask for a swig from the other guys’. Now he was parched. As soon as he paid it mind, the pain grew. His tongue felt swollen. His throat felt scratchy. He began groaning through his gag, the pain was growing unbearable and he had yet to suffer it long.

He heard a snort from somewhere behind him or in front of him, he couldn’t tell. “What’s wrong?” She asked sweetly, tugging the gag away.

“Water.” He said pointedly, trying not to offend or sound too desperate. 

She laughed, “aw, already? It hasn’t been a full day.”

“I didn’t drink much yesterday.” He explained. 

She giggled maniacally, “how unfortunate.” She returned to gag to his mouth and walked away. Lukell tried to call after her but gave up soon after. Much to his surprise, her footsteps reappeared soon after. She pushed at his chin, “move.” She commanded, he obliged. She pushed his chin and tilted his head upward, he opened his mouth slightly. He moved his jaw in an attempt to remind her to remove his gag but she just cackled that awful sound again. “I don’t think so.” He could just barely feel small drops of water fall onto the cloth. “Mmm,” she hummed in thought, “there. That’s enough.” She let go of his face with a shrug. He immediately began sucking at the gag in his mouth but there was practically nothing on it.

His shoulders fell in defeat, the prospect of water only worsened the sensation. He needed to focus on something else. He tried to question the woman, groaning something faintly resembling “who are you?” She just laughed and laughed at him. 

“I wish I had friends to show you to, you’re very entertaining.” She sighed, “I think you just asked who I am but frankly you’re a bit hard to understand.” She sounded so infuriating as she teased him. “I’m not sure I should tell you my name, I would hate for you to go telling everyone who I am when I release you.” She clicked her tongue, “surely you’ve figured out my affiliation, though.” 

He groaned in confusion. Lukell has begun to suspect what she was going to say but he couldn’t risk being wrong. She was clearly oblivious to the fact that he wasn’t from Heillstaðr and he was oblivious to the other groups of Danes. He only knew the Illting, and while it made sense that the rivals would plan an attack, Danes were known for abrupt violence. For all he knew, it could be anyone. But that mention of Maeri’s mother...  _ surely it has to be them _ .

She chuckled, “oh, you’re a stupid one. Well, everyone will know it was us so there’s no point in concealing. I’m with the Illting, a rather successful one to be transparent -- or _translucent_ more accurately. But successful in what, I shall keep to myself. I would say you could probably decipher that detail with context but now I’m not so sure you’re… equipped to do so.” She dropped a singular pat on his head before trotting away, “we’ll talk soon.”


	23. You believe?

Maeri, Aldarin and Alva sat at the table, staring at the rocks they had brought back from the woods. Tomin had been rushed out of the house when they returned, tasked with distracting the toddlers and to do anything but let them inside. Maeri’s stomach was twisted into a mess of knots, loops, and gnarls. Whenever she attempted some form of a disentanglement they would shift into a tighter matted clump, often leaving a noose eerily protruding from its crown. Her mind was engrossed in one object. “We need to find who this is from and where he is now.”

“I know,” Alva spoke pensively. She absentmindedly stroked her chin, “I’m positive this is the Illting, there is no reason for our neighbors to break their long-standing alliances with Aldarin’s father. What confuses me is how they have arrived so soon, they shouldn’t be here for at least a fortnight. And there have been no boats, right Aldarin?” He nodded. “They must have taken a different route and traveled partially on foot,” she mused. “As to where they are camped… there are a few places I believe they could be but I need to fetch my map to be sure.”

“Well go get it!” Maeri shrilly exclaimed. “Sorry,” she calmed, “but we don’t have forever.”

Alva nodded, “shall I fetch Nidho as well? If we begin searching, more eyes are better.” 

“Yes, please do.” Alva abruptly stood and went outside. 

Maeri and Aldarin sat in silence, the faint sound of Alva assuring Rosik of her quick return and children giggling serving as the only noise. 

“I’m so sorry, Maeri.” Aldarin reached for her hand, clutching it in his. “If I had just watched a li-”

“Stop it.” She commanded. “It’s not your fault. Now you can help us get him back and you’ll be absent of guilt.” She didn’t look away from the stone slab. “L...” She flicked the letter from her tongue, staring intently at its morbid inscription. “L.” It rolled out of her lips and into the air, tumbling and gracefully dancing just out of her reach. “L does not stand for ‘Illting.’ It certainly doesn’t stand for the Liðting clan, they’re so small and notorious for their kindness, but there are no other _L_ clans… it must be a name of some other kind.”

“A person’s name or a place’s name?”

“Surely it couldn’t be their location, right? They would want to hide that from us, right?”

“Perhaps they want us to meet them somewhere?”

She paused, she had stared at the L for so long it had begun to look strange. “We can consult Alva’s map, I don’t know of any capitals nearby with an initial of L but I also don’t know the titles of the other landmarks too well.” She finally blinked and shook her head for a second before re-focusing on the letter. “If it’s a person… it must be his captor, no?”

He hummed in thought, “it could be ‘Lukell.’”

“Why would he ask if we wanted him back in his blood?”

“We don’t know it’s his blood and we don’t know who wrote it.”

“But it’s _signed_ ‘L.’” She reasoned, “If ‘L’ is a person than ‘L’ wrote this, ‘L’ has him.” Aldarin agreed meekly. “And I’m positive ‘L’ wants a ransom, why else would he offer ‘him back?’ But what could he want? Why would he take Lukell? He has no power here, he’s not important.”

Aldarin squeezed her hand, “yes, he is.”

She scoffed, “I don’t mean to me I mean in general.”

“But that is his value,” He muttered.

Maeri snapped her head in his direction, “what?”

“I am the son of a Jarl, I have witnessed many trade interactions. An object or a person’s value is determined by who it is important to and how important it is to them.”

“What are you saying?” Her matted stomach lurched as she anticipated his statement.

He sighed despondently, “I’m only telling you this because I think it might be integral to his rescue, I’m sorry if it makes the situation any worse than it is. Lukell has no family here, no family at all, really. He has a baby sister, that is all. He is new and has no attachments to anyone outside of our friend group. Alva, Nidho and I, we know him but he is not very significant in our lives. His ransom would only appeal to you and Julaeka, and Julaeka is a toddler whose existence is unknown to most.” He swallowed shakily, “ _‘L’_ chose Lukell because _you_ are his target. He wants something that _you_ have.”

Her mouth fell open, her head grew light again. Her mind couldn’t function. “But I-” her mouth was dry, “I have nothing. _I_ am not important.”

“You must have _something_.” They shuddered and his tone immediately shifted from dark to worrisome. “Let’s not think about that, we’ll never figure it out! I’m so sorry, Maeri! I’m probably all wrong! It’s probably just a coincidence and they just want silver or something!”

“Aldarin stop.” She weakly demanded, “I needed to know that. Thank you for explaining it to me.” She stood, pouring herself a mug of ale and chugging some of it. “You don’t have to apologize for everything. You feel guilty for so much and you have done so little.”

He hummed somberly, “you told Lukell that you were worried about me.” She nodded slowly, “what else did you tell him?”

“I didn’t go into detail. I know you’re reserved. I just wanted you to know what happened yesterday wasn’t your fault.” She moved so that her hands encased his, “are you still suffering as you were then?”

He nodded despairingly, “I have grown some but I still fear for my sanity, I worry that one day I will awake to a world drenched in red. That I will lose my emotion... like Felaks.”

She shuddered at the name, “but he never had empathy to lose, you do. You know you do.”

“Yes, I know it will never happen.” He waved it off. “How does it always return to me? When you’re upset I am what’s worried for, Lukell is missing and we’re discussing my security. And you say you want me to feel less guilty?” He chuckled half-heartedly.

“Hey, come on,” she walked to his side and pulled him into an embrace, holding him as if she were holding him together. When she sat back smiled sweetly at him, “you’re definitely not my top priority right now.” They laughed, basking in the brief joy before it inevitably evaporated. 

Alva finally came crashing through the door with Nidho on her tail, “I’m soooo sorry that took so long!” She ran to the table and began unraveling her map, placing small stones from a pouch she had tied around her waist at each corner. As Maeri moved to the other side of the table, Alva removed the pouch from her belt and dropped it onto the table with a thud.

“Woah, what’s in there?” Aldarin asked.

“My markers!” She threw her hands up as if it were obvious. She was clearly stressed as she moved frantically. 

Nidho sat beside Aldarin, “it’s a bunch of rocks she painted to indicate where people are or what’s happening.” Aldarin and Maeri looked from Alva to Nidho and paused, he soon noticed their expressions. “What is it? What’s wro-” He stopped when he saw Alva. She had frozen in place, half bent over her map with some of her stones in hand. She was glaring at him with an intensity that could easily sear through steel.

“Don’t speak.” She commanded coldly. 

“I’m sorry baby,” he tried to reason, “Aldarin was confused I was just trying to hel-”

“You’re not helping. I can explain for myself.” She hesitantly snapped her eyes from his and returned to the map. Aldarin tried to read the situation through Nidho’s expression, Maeri observed Alva. Her best friend’s face was like stone. Her jaw was clenched, her eyes were narrowed. Her lips twitched ever so slightly and her throat bobbed. Her eyes started to gloss over as they bounced from a piece of paper to the map. Practically in slow motion, Maeri watched as a single tear fell from Alva’s left ear and sunk into the fabric the map was painted on. Alva blinked violently and swallowed again.

“I’m so glad this map is of use to you.” All eyes turned to Maeri.

“Are you kidding?” Her voice shook at first but she quickly conquered it, “I use it all the time, I love it! It just might be my favorite gift ever,” she winked at her and they exchanged smiles.

Maeri lifted her mug, “would any of you like some ale?” They all nodded and she briskly stood and poured them each a mug, she chose a horn for Nidho. Clearly, he upset Alva so he shouldn’t be allowed to put down his cup. Maeri nodded to herself, _obviously_. She passed out the ale and quickly refilled her own mug before sitting. She waited for Alva to finish adorning her map with its details and sit down, “so what can you determine?”

“They must have landed along Skeggstrǫnd and traveled to their current encampment on foot. They cannot be in Vifillviðr, Nādhirbúa, Sýraheima, or Liðbú because there are too many people or they are too far to be worth the trouble. I suppose they could be in Grárgarðr or Hestrbý but I doubt they would, those are large farms with large families. Stealing someone at night and leaving painted stones for communication is far too stealth-based for them to take any risks being where people are or may go.” She hummed thoughtfully as her eyes darted across the map. “Ríkr-fjalltindr is far too inconvenient.”

“So that leaves…?”

“Hlakkandi-darl and Syrgjandi-viðr.”

“Seriously?” Aldarin winced, “those are the only possibilities?” She nodded grimly.

“ _You_ believe?” Maeri chastised.

He nodded in a similar fashion to Alva, “of course. Names have purposes. I am named for having more years than most would.”

“You’re basically proving my point,” she teased.

“Stop.”

“Well I’m sorry but I’m not giving up on Lukell because of old rumors. Not to mention you were practically in Syrgjandi-viðr when you went hunting.”

“And you see what happened!” He groaned and crossed his arms, his tone serious, “fine. But at least be wary.” He looked to Alva, “I assume you will suggest we split into groups of two and search each?”

“Yeah, it’s the most efficient.”

He nodded slowly, “well I would prefer the Weeping Yews.” He looked pointedly at Maeri, “you know the woods Nidho, Lukell, and I were in are not the same. Syrgjandi-viðr begins when the spruce is overcome by the yew. It’s _much_ thicker and far more frightening.”

“If it scares you so why opt for it?” Alva pried.

His eyes narrowed toward her, “when my options either weep or scream is it really unclear why I would choose the former?”

The girls scoffed and looked at each other. “It would appear we are the only ones who won’t piss ourselves in Hlakkandi-darl,” Maeri offered.

Alva smirked. “Agreed.” 

“Hey wait! I’m not sc-” Nidho froze as if Alva were Medusa (yes I know that reference is not topical I’m sorry). 

Aldrin quickly patted his shoulder, “you can come with me.” Nidho nodded despondently.

“Well, what are we waiting for?” Maeri stood, and began toward the door when Alva called out to her.

“Wait, we can’t now.” Maeri whipped around with a questioning glare. “It’s too late in the day,” Alva squeaked. Maeri stepped toward her, her face not remotely softening. “I’m sorry, my family was having problems when I tried to leave and on the way-” she glanced at Nidho and sighed. “I’m sorry I was late but now it is best that we wake until tomorrow morning. If we leave now, the night will fall before we even arrive.”

Maeri groaned and sat back down. “Okay. Fine. We will scout tomorrow then.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A rough replica of Alva's map, for anyone curious: 
> 
> file:///home/chronos/u-121c6149fd99954613e30ee7fe09a0cc88eb0aac/MyFiles/Downloads/Why%20didn't_%20Details.pdf


	24. Are you okay?

Maeri arrived at Alva’s house before the sun had fully awoken, the sky mostly blue as pink lined the horizon. She shuddered; it reminded her far too much of her and Lukell. She shook it off and rapped on the door. After a short while, a disheveled Alva opened the door. “Girl, it’s still dark.” She groaned, rubbing her eyes.

“It won’t be when we get there!”

She shook her head, “give me a moment to change.” Maeri nodded and leaned against the wall as she waited.

She peered up at the sky, the blue had grown lighter. It now resembled the subject of her heart even more accurately. There were pink clouds scattered about the light blue expanse. The sight tugged the corners of her mouth down. Maeri used to adore pink, it was easily her favorite color when she was younger. As she aged the shade had dimmed into a deep crimson, maturing alongside her, but pink still resided in a special part of her heart. It reminded her of her childhood and simplicity. It reminded her of her mother. While the color could elicit nostalgic happiness it could also spur a nervous sense of vulnerability, naivety. Staring at the sky she imagined Lukell holding her in her darkest moment, his calming blue encasing her vulnerability and chasing away her hopelessness. She groaned, burying her head in her hands.  _ He has to be okay. _

“Ready?” Alva popped out of her home and stood beside Maeri, “are you okay?”

“Hmm?!” She hummed, her head darting up. She shook her head and began walking, “yeah, yeah, I’m fine. I just want to do this as fast as possible.”

Alva followed behind her, “yeah I know.”

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

When they had arrived at the valley the sky had lost any remnant of the night. Despite the shining sun, the valley was dim as they neared it, shadowed by one of the mountains. Alva turned to her friend, “do you think there are truly screams?”

“No,” she waved off the legend, “mountains, trees, grass,” she gestured to their surroundings, “they cannot scream.” Alva shrugged it off and they continued.

Maeri shivered, it was cooler in the shade. She could feel Tikki’s warmth against her legs as she and Alva trotted deeper into the valley. They simply had to bring their mares, the valley was too expansive for them to case on foot. It was relatively barren, there was grass along the center but the majority of the ground was coated in moss-covered rocks. There was no path, hardly anyone dare travel through. “If the Illting came through here they did well covering their tracks.” Alva mused.

“They could’ve come from the other side?” Maeri proposed.

“Yeah, at first. But they wouldn’t have when they took Lukell. It would have taken them far too long to travel around one of the mountains just to enter from the other side.” She patted her horse’s neck. “It’s possible the ground has already recovered. I just think it's strange for such untouched land to bear no marking of travel.” She peered behind them, “see? Our tracks are deep and evident.” She tsked, “we shall continue but I believe the boys will have more luck.”

Maeri frowned, their journey now felt pointless. “Why not just go back then?”

Alva raised a brow toward her, “no tracks is not a definite ‘no.’ If you want to find Lukell you want to explore any possibility to its fullest. If I’m wrong and we turn back and the boys find nothing than that time we lost could mean losing your man.” Her voice was stern and earnest, there was no room for comfort.

She still felt a bit defeated but she knew her friend was right, they could take no risks. She still couldn’t shake the feeling that she was being useless. They continued deeper into the valley, Maeri followed a short distance behind Alva so that every area was checked twice.

They had been slowly trekking forward when something startled Alva’s mare. “Woah!” She shouted, trying to calm the bucking horse. She was nearly thrown from her with a second lift as they both squealed. “Calm, Triks! Calm!” Alva reared her mare to the side and cantered to a spot behind Maeri. 

“What happened?” She called after her.

Alva’s brows furrowed, “I don’t know! She was fine a moment ago.” She didn’t dare dismount in case something spooked her horse again. She was leaning over her horse’s neck, petting her soothingly and muttering something. 

Maeri’s eyes were over her shoulder, watching her friend as Tikki mosied forward. A high-pitched horse squeal in Maeri’s ear alerted her just in time to hastily grab her horse’s mane as she bucked. Maeri quickly followed Alva’s course of action and cantered back to where she and Triks stood. “What the fuck?” Maeri spat, looking back at the spot that spooked both mares for no apparent reason. She looked to Alva with wide eyes as she subconsciously comforted her mare, “what do we do?”

Alva shrugged, “continue?” Maeri nodded grimly as Alva took the lead again. She was being much more observant of her second time through the passage, nothing happened and she moved further into the valley. Maeri shook her head and patted Tikki’s neck as she urged her forward.  _ Strange, _ she thought.

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

The sun now sat directly above them in the sky, illuminated the valley. They’re eyes had adjusted to the light and they used it eagerly, moving a little faster now that they could see a little better. There was silence between the girls as they devoted all of their focus to the search. Suddenly, a gust of wind burst through the valley. It howled, almost screeching as it rushed past them. The girls perked up and looked at each other, startled. They shook their heads and laughed.

“Do you think that’s the screaming?”

“Probably,” Maeri chuckled at the thought. “The fearless Vikings, shitting themselves at wind!” They moved forward, resuming their speed from before. Maeri’s mind seemed to rattle when it moved, the thoughts of her and Lukell swarming around her brain and beating against her skull. She needed to find him, she could feel tears forming in her eyes and she looked around the valley. It was vacant. What if they found nothing? What if Aldarin and Nidho found nothing?

They hadn’t been traveling for much longer when they heard a similar sound, Maeri thought nothing of it at first but she shuddered when she noticed a key difference between the two noises. There was no wind the second time, her heartbeat picked up a little as she tried to justify it.  _ Perhaps it just hasn’t caught up yet, _ she quickly looked over her shoulder. The leaves were stagnant as far as she could see.  _ Maybe I felt it and just didn’t notice _ , she offered. She was satisfied with that answer until her eyes passed over her best friend’s face. Alva was paler than Maeri had ever seen her, she hadn’t felt the wind either. 

“I’m pretty sure I-” in the middle of the comfort she was extended she was cut off by the sound again. Now it was far more eerie. Alva looked petrified, Maeri smiled weakly at her, waiting for the wind to catch up so she could explain the sound. She was still waiting when the valley darkened in an instant. The horses began squealing again and the girls were not far behind. “What happened to the sun!?” Maeri gasped. 

“I don’t know! What do we do?” Maeri was about to wave it off as her eyes began adjusting to the new light setting when the scream sounded again. It was closer and it was horrific, it sounded miserable and desperate. It ended abruptly with a strangled gurgle. “Fuck! We need to go.” Alva’s voice shook but her sentiment was unwavering. Maeri could just see the shape of Alva and her horse whipping around and galloping away at top speed. Maeri followed suit, hardly having to nudge Tikki to move faster. As they sped back the way they came the sound returned and Maeri screamed, she was positive a disheveled man was lying against the side of the mountain as she galloped past. She heard Alva scream a little ways before her. Tikki jumped over something. Maeri looked back just in time to see what looked like a body strewn across the path. 

She kicked against Tikki, “faster! Fuck! Move faster!” Somehow the horse managed to follow her instruction, galloping at a speed Maeri had never seen her go before. After what felt like ages of galloping as screams chased after them and faint but grotesque images appeared in the dark the girls were spat from the mouth of the valley. They continued riding further but they allowed their mares to slow a little as they followed the path back to Alva’s home. 

When they finally returned to the farmhouse they quickly tethered their horses, all four of them sinking to the ground immediately. The mares laid on their sides, panting heavily. The girls took deep, shaking breaths. They looked at each other fearfully.

“I- That-” Maeri tried and failed. Alva began but stopped after a similar result. Oddlaug came barrelling out of the house. 

“You guys went to Hlakkandi-darl! What was it like?” She stopped and stared down at them, her eyes widening quickly. “Are you guys okay?”

“Oddi, bring us some water. Now, please.” Alva asked politely but the desperation was obvious. Oddlaug nodded quickly and hurried back inside. She returned soon after with two mugs of water, handing them to each of the girls. They clasped their hands around the mugs, pausing before simultaneously chugging their contents. When they finished they both looked to their empty cups and extended them back to Oddlaug, Maeri far more sheepishly than Alva. Her sister nodded again, disappearing into the house once more. When she returned the girls drank their new waters more slowly, their heart rates finally beginning to slow.

“What happened?” Oddlaug sat before them, concern and interest twinkling in her eyes.

Maeri exhaled slowly and looked at her, she took a swig of water before beginning her retelling. “It seemed normal enough but then there was this sound.”

“Like screaming.” Alva added.

Oddlaug’s lips pursed, “was it the wind?”

“We thought it was at first,” Alva explained, “but after that first one there was no wind to accompany the screeching.”

“Then the sky went dark, the valley was suddenly pitch black and the sound returned. We turned and sped away but as we ventured back the screaming continued. It grew more human and more pained every time it sounded. As we moved I could swear I saw the body of a man laying against the mountainside.”

“Yes! Yes!” Alva agreed, “and there was another one across the ground that Triks had to jump over!” Maeri nodded. “And the corpse atop that rock pile, and the limbs in the branches, and-”

Maeri gasped, “there were limbs in branches?” Alva nodded hurriedly. “I didn’t see those!”

“They were just to the left, there was a large, dead spruce tree with what looked like limbs impaled on its branches!”

“I-” Maeri shook her head, look back through the series of events and trying to place the image. “I must have missed it, at some point I stopped looking around and just focused on moving forward and getting out.”

Alva nodded, sipping her water. “Good, we needed to leave. I don’t want to know what that was or how that happened.”

“I didn’t see anything of the sort when we were entering!”

“Me neither!” Alva threw up her hands, exasperated and still clearly shaken up. “It was like it all appeared when the sun disappeared.”

Oddlaug hummed, looking up the sky. “The sun was covered by a cloud for a long while until just a few moments ago, was that what caused the darkness?”

The girls exchanged looks and shook their heads, still in shock. “Maybe…” Maeri muttered. 

“Yes, it must have been that.” Alva agreed, “it must have been covered by the cloud as it moved behind the mountain. It must have happened at the exact same time, that was why it got so dark so quickly.”

Maeri nodded, it made sense. That still didn’t explain the carnage they passed as they left but she had to think about something else. Unfortunately, her mind settled on another thought she had been trying to ignore.  _ What if they are in there _ , she thought hopelessly,  _ what if she just chickened out of finding Lukell? _ She could feel eyes on her and her head dropped, her eyes filling with tears quickly.

She could hear Alva beside her but her voice sounded a bit muffled. “Oddi, can you leave us be for a little?” There was the sound of shuffling feet and a door opening and closing. Alva’s palms were on Maeri’s shoulders, rubbing gently circles and she whispered to her. “Talk to me, Maeri. Talk to me.” She shuddered, her shoulders shaking as she began bawling. Alva scooped her into a hug, pulling her close and holding her against her chest. 

The image of Lukell in the water when they fished with Alva now splashed in her eyelids. The feeling of his skin against her hands as she guided him. The feeling of his hands against her skin as he pleasured her. The ghosts of the sensations were burning her flesh, the searing pain of his absence growing far too excruciating to ignore. She held onto Alva for dear life as she sobbed. Eventually, she managed to speak, her voice felt so thick it stuck to the roof of her mouth like sap. “What if he’s in there?” She shoved the horrid through her lips as Alva stroked her arm comfortingly.

“He isn’t.”

“But what if he is and we just ran away from them? What if we lost him because we were too scared to-”

“Stop.” Alva commanded, her voice immediately softening as she continued. “There were no tracks remember, between that, the legends, and what we just saw ourselves I am confident that there is no way the Illting set up camp in Hlakkandi-darl. Aldarin and Nidho will find something and they’ll get here and tell us all about it.”

“Okay...” she cried for a little while longer. She knew Alva was probably right but she couldn’t seem to stop. It did eventually though and Maeri sat up, giving Alva a tight hug of gratitude. “Thank you for being my best friend.”

“Hey, thank you for being mine!” Alva chirped, “my life would be misery without you!”

“Well you have Nidho at least,” Maeri paused, observing Alva carefully. Her friend looked away awkwardly and quieted down. “What happened with you two yesterday?”

Alva sharply exhaled and looked at Maeri. “While we were riding over he started interrogating me about why I was ‘nervous to have children.’ As if I’ve ever been  _ nervous _ in my life.” She spat out the last sentence. 

“Alva,” she looked pointedly at Maeri. She raised her arms in surrender as she slowly continued to conversation. “I don’t think you’re nervous, per say, but you do seem to have some sort of reservation on the idea of children.” 

She scoffed, “you too?”

“No, no, please don’t get mad at me I’m just trying to understand the situation.” Alva looked at her as if to give her permission to continue. “I mean, you studied and perfected the art of avoiding conception. The two of you have been together longer than most without children have been, the only exception being those who are sterile.  _ Is _ there something holding you back?”

Alva groaned, pressing her head into her hands before looking up at Maeri with anger. Before she could spew some insult her eyes softened, welling slightly in the corners. She frowned and looked to the side, her volume subsiding dramatically. “I just know what it's like living with too many people in your house all the time. You get no space, you get little food, and everything you do have is shared with someone else. I don’t want my children to live like this.” She gestured to her farmhouse weakly before dropping her hand to her head and rubbing her temple.

“Is that what you told Nidho?” Alva shook her head. “Why not!?”

“The little asshole asked why I was  _ nervous _ !”

Maeri chuckled, “but Alva,” she reasoned, “you are.” She laughed at Alva’s death-stare. “He’s just trying to figure out what’s wrong. You should talk to him about it.”

She sighed and looked down, “he’s so excited. It’s his dream to have children, it’s all he has ever wanted. I’ve always dreaded having one and then waking up one morning with six more and suddenly a home that was large is now cramped and everyone is constantly fighting and-”

“Alva, you know that won’t happen. You’ve perfected sex without the risk of becoming with child!”

“Yeah, I know. The thought still bothers me though.”

“Then tell him that. I think it will make you both happier.” 

Alva looked past Maeri and snorted, “what timing.” Maeri spun around to see Aldarin and Nidho galloping toward them with somber expressions. 


	25. Why do you want her?

Aldarin and Nidho settled across from Alva and Maeri, Oddlaug had supplied them each with a mug of water in exchange for her permission to eavesdrop. Aldarin looked pale, Nidho glanced from him to Alva. He was trying to determine whether or not he was allowed to speak for the sake of his best friend. With a final look to Aldarin he cleared his throat, patting his back as he began. “They are in Syrgjandi-viðr,” he quickly winced in preparation. His eyes widened slightly toward Alva as he continued, she just looked down. “We found their camp in the thick of the forest. It’s very compact and well protected by the trees. The branches make silent travel hard so we will want to arrive at their camp while it is busy and there is a lot of noise. We must still watch our step but that way we will be less noticeable if someone accidentally steps on something. Within the thick of the forest, vision is quite difficult for both sides so we will be well covered as well.”

Maeri took advantage of his pause, “so what time do you propose we leave?”

“It took us about a quarter of a day to complete the journey there so I believe we should leave at the halfway point between dawn and midday. If we do so we should arrive at their camp while it is beginning to darken but the camp will still be boisterous.” Maeri nodded in agreement. “Also, pack light. Only bring back up weapons. I know we all want to hurt these people but for Lukell’s sake it is best we get in and out quickly and avoid conflict at all costs.”

“Okay.” Maeri peered at Aldarin, his face was still abnormally pale. She looked to Nidho with concern and his small pout was not comforting. “Aldarin, can we talk over here for a moment?” He nodded despondently and stood slowly. Maeri led him away, looked over her shoulder to throw Alva a quick wink before hugging Aldarin.

“Wha-why?” He scowled at her as she gave him a firm squeeze.

“You don’t look okay, is everything alright?”

He scoffed, “Maeri our mortal enemies stole your love, mostly because of my stupidity.”

“Okay, yeah. But,” she held his face in her hands, “what happened today, you look especially unwell.” He chuckled, she smiled at the lightening of his mood.

“I guess it just got more real when I saw their camp.” He shrugged, “and Syrgjandi-viðr is quite unnerving.” She jabbed at his side as she teased his cowardice. When Maeri stopped she immediately looked at Alva and Nidho. She must have just caught the end of their discussion because she watched as Nidho’s eyes lit up. He jumped up in excitement, nearly toppling the table to get to her faster. He scooped her into a bone-crushing hug, pulling away only to kiss her more passionately than Maeri had imagined possible. He was ecstatic, and that mixed with his intense love for Alva was practically flowing from him and encasing the room. “What did you say to her?”

Maeri shrugged, “I just told her to talk to him.”

He sighed, “I hope to find a love like that someday.”

“You will.” Alva and Nidho finally stopped for air and Nidho wrapped her in his arms again, burying his head into the crook of her neck as tears of joy began dripping down her back.

Aldarin hummed in uncertainty and turned his attention back to Maeri. “You have found yours, we will get him back tomorrow.” She nodded, touched by his confident tone. 

“You guys are staying for dinner right?” Alva called to them as she slowly maneuvered her and Nidho so that she could face them. Maeri laughed and nodded.

\--)-(----)-(--

Lukell was still indescribably parched. He needed water only now his thirst was accompanied by hunger. So when he heard footsteps approaching his heart both rose and sank. He knew his captor wouldn’t oblige his needs, especially if he asked for them, so he sat still and quiet. He was startled by a much sweeter voice than he anticipated peaking into his ears from above him. This tone was untainted by malice, she sounded genuinely concerned. “Are- are you alive?” Lukell made an effort to move in some indication of life but soon discovered he was too weak. He attempted a groan instead and was slightly more successful. “Oh! Oh dear, she hasn’t been caring for you, has she.” No response, even if he had something to say or do Lukell was practically incapable in the moment. The woman tsked and hummed, he heard rummaging as she seemed to walk a circle around him. “I don’t think she’ll be in here for a little… here.” She pulled his gag out of his mouth.

He gasped, breathing in through his mouth without the obstruction for the first time in what felt like forever. He was still blinded but now he could taste the air. He gulped it down, trying to suck what moisture he could from it. 

“Hold on, drink this.” He felt the rim of a flask against his bottom lips and his whole body immediately stilled. She poured the water down his throat, pulling it back before he choked. He eagerly swallowed it and dropped his jaw for more. She poured a little more but it seemed as though the flask had run out. He heard her scurry away and return a few moments later with something else. She tucked a chunk of bread between his lips and he savored it carefully before swallowing it. She gave him one more before slowly pulling the blindfold up to his forehead. 

He blinked, needing a moment for his eyes to adjust. As soon as the world was remotely in focus he looked in the woman’s direction. “Thank you.” He managed, his voice hoarse and unused.

She smiled weakly at him. She had bright red hair twisted back into a bun, her blue-green eyes were staring intensely at him. “I’m very sorry about all of this. As I’m sure you know by now, it isn’t about you. Lifa just needs Sabjorn’s daughter because rumor has it she’s as beautiful as her mother. And if  _ you _ like her...” She looked him up and down and blushed, “I suppose the rumor is likely true.” 

“Why-” Lukell caught the anger in his tone and smoothed it out as he continued, “-do you want her?”

Her brows furrowed, “because she is supposedly beautiful like her mother.” She spoke as if every word she said should’ve been obvious. “Sabjorn is Lifa’s top product and she’s starting to get old.” Lukell bit his tongue to restrain himself. “If you really like her then I’m sure you don’t want to lose her but trust me, everything will go much easier if we just make the trade. You’re attractive, you can find another.”

“I-” He started, “you-” he stopped himself. Every thought he tried to put into the world was terribly angry and threatening. He couldn’t lose himself so soon, he needed to seem temperate and dumb. He just nodded, trying his hardest to keep his face from conveying his fury. 

She smiled at him, “good.” Quickly looking over her shoulder she tugging his blindfold back over his eyes and stuffed his mouth. 

“Sigbrina?” He recognized his captor's voice as she approached.  _ Lifa _ , he assumed. “What are you doing?”

With a nervous chuckle, the redhead explained, “I was just observing the prisoner. He’s quite handsome.”

Lifa hummed in thought, “if that girl doesn’t hurry up we might just take him back.”

“Really?” Her voice flew with excitement, “but what would we do with him?”

“I’m not sure,” she mused. “I was considering making the Hórdómr more appealing to more... types of customers.” She scoffed, “let’s leave this tent it is beginning to reek.”

\--)--)--(--(--

The group was deep into the woods the next day. They were trying to avoid making noise on the off chance someone from the camp was near enough to hear them. Maeri was deep in thought.

Lukell was taken in these woods, she supposed it should have been obvious that they would be camped so near -- or maybe that was what threw her suspicion? They sunk between the trees, working their way deeper and deeper into the forest. It had felt like they had been trekking forever when Maeri noticed the trees becoming more abundant. 

“Guys.” Alva paused before a particularly dense patch of trees, “Maeri, stop for a moment.” She stood still beside her, looking at her inquisitively. “Do you see that?” She pointed to a gap in the branches. 

Maeri’s eyes followed her arm, she stared into the hole. She could just make out a thick yew tree, its trunk resembling a cluster of smaller ones. She could see a large branch twisting from its middle, extended itself toward them with a raised end; it beckoned for them to come closer. “I thought we only had two chickens with us.” She crossed her arms and pouted at her best friend. 

“I’m not scared I just wanted to point it out.”

Aldarin groaned, “that is the first of many. We are about to enter Syrgjandi-viðr.”

They continued. He was right, the spruce trees were quickly being outnumbered by the yews, their long, winding branches taking up far more space. Soon thick clumps of trees almost completely blocked their path. The group slid through the cracks in the wooden walls, edging deeper into the daunting forest. She knew it was around midday but the tree-tops blocked so much light it looked as though night had fallen early. It was eerie but she had little focus left for that, all she could think about was Lukell. She was going to get him back. The sound of voices in the distance startled her. 

They were close.

She was going to get him back.


	26. Why did they want me?

After having finally received some sustenance from the girl with red hair -- Sigbrina, he supposed -- Lukell was able to focus on his surroundings again. He could hear people shuffling around outside his tent. Time moved like it was wading through a pool of sap but he inferred the shift to the evening when movement subsided and the yelling and laughter was concentrated in one area. That was until he heard some more shuffling again. He hadn’t heard any indication of someone leaving their presumed dining area but there were at least two people slowly surrounding his tent. He heard someone enter. They ran toward him and lunged, shoving him against the pole he was tied to. His back slammed into it with a crack and he groaned, still lacking the energy to fight back. He did manage to jerk his cheek away from the fingers that briefly touched it.

“Stop moving.” A voice he recognized rang through his ears. Surely it was just wishful thinking but it sounded so perfect. “Luka. Luka, stay quiet okay? We’re taking you home.” 

He didn’t move when the fingers returned. They gently ripped out his gag and tore off his blindfold. Sure enough, there she was. Maeri was kneeling in front of him, her eyes wet with heartbreak.

“What have they done to you?” She caressed his cheek gently, outlining its newly hallowed accents.

“Maeri!” Alva snapped at her friend in a hushed voice, “we’ve got to go!”

She nodded frantically and looked back at Lukell; his head was drooping. “No, no, no, stay with me, please. We need to get out of here, I need you to move.” She moved around him and hooked her arms under his shoulders, lifting him from the ground.

His legs were wobbly and untrustworthy, having not been used in days. He fell back into her, “I’m sorry.” He whispered, braving his legs once more and stumbling forward a little before nearly falling over -- stopped only by Maeri’s reflexes. 

She wrapped his arm around her shoulders and muttered some curses under her breath, “why the fuck are you sorry.” 

Alva soon joined her efforts, supporting his other side as they quickly but quietly made their way out of the encampment. As soon as they reached the end of the camp the boys hurried out to help drag him behind a particularly thick tree. They were near the camp but far enough to not be seen. He felt himself drifting in and out of consciousness, this didn’t quite feel real. He shook his head, trying to hold onto their conversation.

“Yes, I know we need to get out of here but he’s too weak to move much so we’ll have to go really slowly.”

“Fine, there isn’t much we can do about it I guess.”

“I- I can walk.” Lukell mustered with a groan. 

There was a hand on his shoulder, he looked over to see Maeri’s concerned face inches from his. “No.” She looked back at the group. “We can go short distances and take breaks like this.” Everyone seemed to be in agreement. 

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

Just as Maeri suggested, they hadn’t moved far before they took another break. Maeri hadn’t removed herself from his side since they were reunited. This time instead of being propped against a tree trunk he was sat, leaning against Maeri’s chest. She had placed him and adjusted accordingly, his head resting just above her heart. The speed at which her heart was beating nearly hurt his ears, it sparked his worry. “Breathe...” he muttered against her skin. 

“I am breathing.” He could hear her frown in her voice as she brushed her fingers through his matted hair.

“Your heart disagrees, take a deep breath.” She did nothing of the sort. “Please?”

With a snort she inhaled and exhaled slowly, he could hear her heart calming. 

“Thank you.” He nuzzled against her, closing his eyes and trying to melt into her.

He didn’t look but he could hear Aldarin to his left. “So,” he began, “do you know why they took you?”

Lukell swallowed, he wasn’t sure how to answer. He could lie and say he didn’t know but it’s probably important that they knew. He worried if he told the truth he might upset Maeri. He weighed the two options in his head, apparently taking too long to answer.

“Luka?” Maeri's voice shook slightly as it cascaded down his head and into his ears. “You do know why, don’t you?”

He bit his lip. He couldn’t lie to that voice. He couldn’t lie to her. He slowly nodded.

“Why?” 

He knit his brows. He didn’t want to say but every other option was ever nearing impossibility. He could refuse to answer but she would surely hate him for doing so. A string of curses bounced around his mind as he opened his eyes and sat up, looking her in the eyes. “They wanted you. I guess they didn’t have a good opportunity to just take you so they took me as bait.”

She shuddered, looking down as her eyes flooded with guilt. “Why did they want me?”

_ Dammit _ , his stomach was sinking so far it grazed the earth’s core. “I don’t know, they didn’t say much. Just that they wanted you to trade yourself for me.”

“That’s not true.” She turned away from him, crossing her arms, “you do know.” He tried shaking his head but she wouldn’t budge. 

Aldarin sensed the tender situation, “we should move again.” 

“Yeah,” Alva and Nidho moved to help Maeri and Lukell up and she wouldn’t move. “Come on,” Alva nudged, “we have to keep moving. We can’t be so close when they discover he’s missing. 

“Tell me why.” She commanded, looked up at Lukell fiercely. 

He groaned, “some woman wanted you. They wanted you because-” he looked away, then looked to every other person in the group as if they could somehow save the situation. “Because-” he squinted, exhaling hard.

“Because what?” She snapped, finally rising to stand before him.

“Because of something about your mother. They said they had heard you were as gorgeous as she was and that they needed you.” He watched her heart break through her blue eyes as they began spilling her emotion. 

“Th-thank you for telling me.” She turned on her heel, beckoning them to join her. “We must go.”

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

As they walked she stayed behind him, not touching him anymore. His heart was on the ground he dragged his feet across as he continually struggled to muster the strength to look over his shoulder at her. Her head was always down. She seemed like she was slowly growing further and further away. Alva turned to him after he returned his gaze forward, “I think she’s going to try and run back to the encampment.”

He looked at her, his heart fluttered with fear as he too feared that exact thing. Alva glanced back again and looked at him. Lukell shrugged himself off of Alva and Nidho’s shoulders and turned around, standing still so that Maeri walked right into him. She was clearly out of it. She stepped back and scowled at him, “what are you doing?”

“Are you going to go back to the camp?”

“What? No.” She snapped at him, crossing her arms and stomping around him. He quickly whipped around after her, grabbing her arms and turning her to face him again. Her back was now to the rest of the group, Alva, in particular, stood directly behind her. 

“You are.” A fury was beginning to boil up from within him, he could feel his skin start to burn as he watched her intently. “You were going to bolt as soon as you got far enough for us to have trouble catching you.” She started to shake her head but just dropped it instead, throwing it back up to glare at him.

“What else am I supposed to do?! If I go back I could save my mother!” She shoved at his chest, “I can save her!!”

He shook her a little too hard for his liking. “Do you have any idea what they’ll do to you!? You  _ know _ what they’ll do to you!” Before she could respond he continued, yelling as hushed as he could. “You cannot go there!”

“But-”

\--)-(----)-(--

“NO!” He yanked her toward him and hugged her with all of the strength he had left. She could feel his heart pounded against his chest, his touch was scalding. He clutched her, she could feel his nose in her hair. He pressed his lips against his neck, they were burning hot. When he pulled away he was looking at her with this expression of pure determination and sadness. He kissed her fiercely, his lips colliding with hers in a hot flash of passion. After far too little time he pulled away again, staring at her. “Maeri,” he smiled weakly, “I love you.” He pushed her shoulders and she stumbled back.

Another set of arms closed around her, her scream just barely muffled by a hand. She frantically looked around to see what was happening. She screamed against the hand, screamed his name as she watched Lukell turn on his heel, and run back the way they came. She didn’t stop as she was dragged further from the camp, further from him.

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

Eventually, the hand was removed from her mouth, but not until they had completely distanced themselves from Syrgjandi-viðr. She whipped around and screamed in Alva’s face. “WHY THE FUCK DID YOU DO THAT?!” She shoved her best friend and cornered her against a spruce tree. “WE JUST GOT HIM BACK! I COULD’VE SAVED HER! WHAT THE FUCK!?” She was ripped from her stance by Nidho who quickly stood protectively in front of Alva.

“If you left you wouldn’t have him anyway!” He yelled back.

“He will come back and he’ll bring your mother with him.” Aldarin’s tone was infuriatingly calm. 

“Fuck you all!” She bellowed, turning to run back into the weeping yews. 

Aldarin tackled her to the ground, holding her down from chasing after him. “The sun is rising, Maeri. It’s too late. All you’ll do is get him killed and then get taken to be raped.”

She began to sob, shaking violently as she curled into a ball on the forest floor. “I hate you. I hate all of you.”


	27. Dead Man's Head

Lukell tore through the woods, moving as fast as he could in an attempt to outrun the end of the adrenaline high. He could hardly see, it was dark, he was blacking out. The dim image before his eyes was slowly being covered with black splotches. With a brunt slam, his body collided with something. Hands closed around his arms and he lost consciousness. 

His head lolled to the chilling, chirping laugh of his captor. “Did you think you got away?” She waited, he was silent, she whipped her palm across his face. “You idiot. You were running back toward us. Did you get lost?” The last question dripped from her lips with a sickening, feigned sweetness.

He groaned, noticing he was no longer gagged. His exhaustion and thirst skill kept him mute, though. He remained unresponsive. 

She slapped him again. “Well congratulations. I have decided to take you instead, seeing as your woman doesn’t seem to care for you enough to take you back.” Lukell was despondently grateful, this was what he wanted. He isn’t dead, he’s going to find Maeri’s mother. He wished life was simpler. He passed out again.

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

He was slowly drawn from his uncomfortable unconsciousness by the sound of tearing flesh and the copper smell of blood. He wasn’t gagged, he wasn’t blindfolded, he was just tied up, albeit quite brisk. The night had ended, the sun illuminated the tent in an orange tint as it showed through the fabric. Lifa sat before him, straddling a man. Upon further inspection, he determined the man to be dead. She was sawing at his neck with a large knife, slowly severing his head in the most gruesome manner. Lukell needed to move, half of his body felt numb. He made the slightest sound as he shifted his position. She slowly turned her head toward him.

“Good morning, dear...” Her smile was wicked, sending shivers down the spine he had just thought was numb. She looked back to the corpse, giving it a strong swipe with the knife before turning back to Lukell. She stared into his eyes as she slowly lifted the dead man’s head. “What do you think?” She turned the head toward her as she looked at it, “the face hardly matches yours, that is true. But look at this!” She stood and stepped aside, gesturing the body. “His build resembles yours! How lucky!”

Her excitement was as unnerving as the twisted smile she wore. “Why?” He croaked, fear and curiosity motivating his risk. 

She crouched in front of him, “Well I need to keep you but by not leaving your corpse behind I am heightening the risk of being followed by your bitch. You can see my issue... Luckily, Leikr, here, has been bothering me for weeks now and he just so happens to be just about your height and a bit skinny. Still muscular though,” her eyes narrowed as she looked him up and down. They lingered in a few areas, growing his discomfort astronomically. “He did need your clothes.”

He thought he could not have been more uncomfortable. But her words yanked his hunger-slowed mind up to speed and he looked down at himself. Completely bare and exposed before her. Unable to move to cover himself. He felt the urge to cry, swallowing it down purely to avoid further harassment. 

“Sigbrina!” His captor screeched for her second-hand. The red-head scurried inside, stopping to stare at Lukell. He closed his eyes, wishing desperately for time to move faster. “Put this somewhere where it will be found, I need them to know I killed ‘him.’”

“Of course.” Lukell reopened his eyes to see Sigbrina dragging the headless corpse out of the tent, a thick stripe of blood trailing behind them. 

“We are leaving tonight by the way.” Lifa promptly turned on her heel and left. Lukell collapsed onto himself, crying silently.

\--)-(----)-(--

Maeri hadn’t stopped bawling since her friends dragged her through the woods. She wouldn’t speak, she wouldn’t eat. When she returned to her home she took Julaeka in her arms and curled around her. They closed themselves in her room. They didn’t sleep but they sobbed. They hadn’t spoken, not even to each other. They just wept. 

Julaeka had eventually exhausted herself. Just as she had passed out, Maeri heard her door open and a few pairs of boots walk across the floor. “Maeri?” Her father called for her. He opened the door to see her feigning sleep, quickly shutting as to not disturb her. “They are sleeping.”

“Nid and I plan to return to their camp and see when they leave, or if they have already. We want to follow them back.”

“You want to go to the heart of our rivals? Tell me you don’t plan to do this alone? Andskoti is a wretched place, there is a reason we haven’t sent rescue groups there before.”

Alva huffed, “we have to do something! Maybe a smaller group is more ideal! Maybe it is best we infiltrate their capital and-”

“No, do not act with passion and stupidity.” Maeri clenched her fists, her friends were trying to make up for their ignorant abandonment of her love. Why would her father be so idiotic as to deny them that opportunity? “You are planning a rescue, you will need space for those you rescue. I can provide you food for the journey- your families are aware you are planning this?” There was a long pause, the floorboards creaked as someone shifted their weight. “You’re kidding me.”

“You know my parents are insanely strict! They get mad at me for spending time with one of my childhood best friend’s for no reason! If I mentioned this to them they wouldn’t let me leave the house!”

“They have reason. What exactly were you planning on telling them?”

“That Nidho and I are going on a trip.”

Tomin groaned. “I cannot, in good conscience, allow this.”

“For Maeri, please. You didn’t hear her when he went back. You didn’t hear her scream.”

Nidho finally spoke, “Alva… it’s not your fault.”

Maeri could hear Alva begin to sob on the other side of the door. “I know, I know. I had to tell him, I had to do something. But that scream… her voice...”

“She needs this, Tomin.”

Her father groaned again. “I wish none of this had happened.” There was another long pause, Alva seemed to be gathering herself. “Okay, I will help you both the best I can, but I need you to have planned every detail and I need to hear that plan, before I do anything. I know the trip there is supposed to be a little while. Where will you get your boat?”

“We’re not sure...” Nidho said sheepishly. 

“That may be your most important asset. Find a boat.”

\--)--)--(--(--

The rocking of the boat made Lukell nauseous. Fortunately, he was no longer nude but the light robe Sigbrina had dressed him in hardly protected him from the cold. He didn’t dare complain. He was struggling to think at all. Before he had been clothed by her ginger second-hand, Lifa had attempted to mount him. He nearly blacked out, he was miserable -- apparently too miserable. She failed to arouse him. He was so thoroughly disgusted by her that she couldn’t get him up. In a fit of anger, she split his lip and slapped him repeatedly but he could care less. He had found a little way to beat her. Regardless, the event replayed in his mind. He couldn’t escape the horrible feeling.

Now he listened as some men tried to quietly complain about Lifa. He overheard her say something about overthrowing an Earl at some point. It was all blending together. The sinking feeling of what had happened and the insurmountable dread of what was coming. He was lost in a spiraling pit of misery when the boat hit the dock with a thud.  __

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next few chapters might have some "dazed-like" skip moments. I don't want to write the dark stuff in grotesque detail, it makes me sad and I don't think it's necessary. If anything doesn't quite make sense let me know it the comments. I'm sorry for any confusion :(


	28. Pas moi

A rope was fastened around Lukell’s neck like a leash. So tight he barely evaded choking but the slightest tug closed his throat. Lifa dragged him from the boat hastily, making no effort to make it remotely easy for him. He tripped on the side of the boat and fell. Unable to break his fall, his cheek hit the deck with a thud. She didn’t pause. She continued to drag him, gagging behind her as his skin scraped against the splinters. He scrambled to his feet as quickly as he could to follow behind, coughing as he did so.

She tore through her fellow Danes, ripping him alongside her as she passed through the plaza. A large barn -- or rather stables -- stood a little distant from the main town center but not so far that the walk lasted long. She swung the doors open and scurried through as they slapped against the sides of the structure, chasing her backside. They slammed into Lukell, lurching him forward. He barely caught himself before falling again. The stables reeked of piss and shit. He looked around as she pulled him through the hall between the stalls. The normal half doors intended to house horses had been removed, replaced with thick, full spruce ones. Each adorned carved numbers metal additions, a series of latches across from their hinges, and a frame for a thin wooden slab that looked like it could be slid aside to reveal the room’s contents. 

It was eerily quiet. There appeared to be ten stalls total, five on either side. The first two they had passed were labeled 1 and 10. As they approached the third row he looked from side to side and saw through the open frame of stall 8. A young black-haired woman whimpering and cursing in his language. He squinted at her, trying to make out her features. Suddenly she looked up at him, she held out her hands and shook them. “Pas moi! Pas moi!” She wept toward him, earning a hiss from Lifa who quickly snapped the wood back in place. Hiding the woman from the hall once again. As she led him further he was struck by the memory of the woman from stall 8. She was from his village, just one year older than him. He had assumed she died in the raid two years ago when he stopped seeing her around. Now he realized she had been taken here, sitting in that cell and weeping for years. 

Without warning Lifa shoved him into stall 9, hastily sliding his leash through a hole in the wall. Someone on the other side must have grabbed it and fastened it somewhere. She cut his hands free and stormed out of the cell, slamming the door behind her. He could only walk a few paces from the hole in the wall, he couldn’t reach the door. The floor of the cell was covered in bedding, mimicking a true horse stall. There was also a bed, far too comfortable in comparison to the other condition.

After sitting for a while a bowl was slid into his cell, its soupy content sloshing across the hay floor. He drank it eagerly. The eerie stillness and quiet made for an unnerving rest as he laid in the bed, it’s comfort carrying him swiftly to sleep. 

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

A while later he awoke to Lifa screaming, “eat Bitch! You’re so skinny, it’s disgusting!”

“No.” A cold voice spoke in response, not naturally cold but chilled with time. A voice that sounded pained, tortured, and strong. 

“I will make you then!” The statement was followed by yelling, groaning, and a stomach-churning gurgling sound. “Fuck. Now you’ll have to be washed -- I think we shall do it outside for any witness who happens by.”

No response.

“Ugh!” Lifa was clearly exasperated by the woman’s stillness. “Sigbrina!”

“Yes, Lifa?”

“Help me drag this bitch outside so she can be cleaned!” There was the sound of her scurrying and the two of them dragged the woman from her cell. No kicking, no screaming, no reaction. Lukell couldn’t see the woman but he knew she was supplying Lifa no reaction whatsoever. He heard the sound of water splashing against the ground, dripping off of skin. Still no reaction except for Lifa groans of annoyance.

There was a shuffling sound outside of his door and it soon swung open to reveal a scrawny boy with a broom and a wheel-barrel. He looked Lukell up and down and gulped, hastily moving into the stall and sweeping. Just like a horse’s the boy brushed the hay out of the stall and replaced it with new straw. He hurried out.

A short while later Lukell could hear the woman from before being dragged back into her cell. Then Lifa gasped, presumably startled as the woman began speaking. “You- you said you left to get my daughter.” Lifa laughed at her, Lukell could practically hear her doubling over as she threw the woman back into her cell. 

“The little whore looks just like you.” She chirped, pure evil soaking her voice. “Especially that Raven hair her father lacks, it really does suit her features -- your features.” He heard the door slam shut as Lifa skipped away, leaving the stables.

The woman began to sob as soon as Lifa was gone. Her quiet howls of misery poignant enough to shake the world with her grief. 

“Sabjorn?” 

Lukell had finally decided to speak, spitting the risk in the eye as he reached desperately into the dark for an answer. 

“Who’s there?” The woman responded with fire on her tongue.

Lukell moved as close to the door as he could without choking as he called to her. “I- my name is Lukell. I- I’m in love with your daughter.” He tried to explain himself in the most concise way, fearful of Lifa’s sudden return. 

“You’re lying to me. You don’t know my daughter. Lifa- Lifa has m-my daughter...” The woman began to sob again, anger laced with her sadness.

“No! I love Maeri, truly, with every bone in my body, every part of my skin!” He yelled in whispers. “The heart that pounds life into me resides blissfully in her grasp. She- we- I can prove I know her! The little cave down the river bank! The one she covers the entrance to with fabrics! The one only you cou-” He was cut off by the sound of the stable doors swinging open. 

Lifa’s footsteps were accompanied by heavier ones. “Do you want the same as last time?” She asked.

Her question was met with a grunt. “No, getting tired of that bitch. Want one like’r though.”

Lifa hummed, “yes, you should find 3 enjoyable.” She pranced forward, the sound of the wood slab being slid to the side rewarding her another grunt from the man.

“Yeah, she’ll do.” The latches came undone and the woman two stalls down from Lukell began begging.

“No, no.” She cried, “please don’t- I won’t be any good- I won’t be.” Lukell curled onto his bed and plugged his ears as he heard the sound of clothes hitting the ground. The woman’s words echoing in his brain as polarized moans rang through the stables.

He was in a terrible place. 

He needed to get them out.

He needed to get out.

How was he going to get out?

\--)-(----)-(--

The night had fallen a while ago and Maeri was finally tired of her room. She heard Nidho and Alva enter the house like they had a couple of days ago. She listened to them talk to her father.

“We have a boat, Aldarin was able to lend us one under the guise of a fishing trip. It holds six.” Nidho explained the logistics while Alva described the plan. 

They would leave tomorrow.

Maeri emerged from her room, her hair was matted and unkempt. Her eyes sunken, her posture slouched. She stood before the wide eyes of her fearful friends and father. 

“I’m coming too.”


	29. You think I don't think about her every day?!

The sun had just set when a loud knocking began. The rapping at the door was frantic. When Tomin opened it Nidho nearly fell inside. The pouring rain began flooding into the house so Tomin dragged the young man inside. Nidho dragged a body along with him. “Tomin! Tomin!” He was out of breath, panting violently. He pointed to the body. “It- It was- It’s him!”

“Shh!!” Tomin clamped his hand around Nidho’s mouth. “Don’t wake Maeri, we need to figure out what to do first.”

“I’ll get Alva and Aldarin! They can help! They know this stuff better than I do...”

He nodded, “okay, okay you do that.” 

Nidho turned and ran out the door through which he had entered, a threshold of world crumbling news. Tomin stared at the corpse,  _ too young _ , he thought, tears forming in his eyes,  _ that’s too young to die _ .

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

Nidho returned not long after, the sky a slightly grimmer black and crying a violent downpour. Alva and Aldarin were with him now, they scurried inside like fearful mice. Tomin gestured to the headless corpse on the ground sorrowfully. They gathered around him, observing from every angle they could.

“Is it him? Are you sure?” Alva began chirping out questions, as per usual. 

Aldarin shooed at whoever was near him and laid beside the body, lining his shoulders with his. “He was about this height...” he spoke shakily.

“It-” Nidho began, not trusting his voice to carry his thought he looked to his love.

“It does look like him...” Alva finished. “Where did you find it?”

“He was at the encampment, it-it was a large expanse and I had been putting off going… I-I left early today but I found him so late in the afternoon and dr-dragging the body slowed me down so much I-I I’m so sorry- I’m so sorry!” Alva quickly wrapped her arms around Nidho, gently pulling him down so they could sit on the floor. She leaned against some furniture and held him close, cradling his sobbing head against her chest as she fought back tears of her own.

“Fuck!” Aldarin slapped himself, “this is all my fault!”

“Stop!” Alva snapped at him, “you boys are so damn emotional! It is neither of your faults!” She gently combed through Nidho’s hair, “it’s mine for telling him she was going to run back!” Her tears began flooding as well, the three teenagers bawling profusely in a small, very lopsided triangle… around a corpse.

Tomin growled, “will all of you shut up! It’s no one’s fault but the ones who took him!” His head turned to look at each of them respectively. “It’s not your fault for turning your back for two seconds, it’s not your fault for taking your time and it isn’t your fault for looking out for your best friend! SO SHUT UP!” 

A hush immediately fell over the room. Just as Tomin had finished his reprimand there was the hauntingly slow creak of a door opening. The hairs on his neck stood like electricity was sparking through him. He dared to turn his head slowly. There she stood, disheveled, dirty and angry. Everyone in the room was frozen and silent, as if she wouldn’t notice them, as if she wasn’t staring right at them -- until she wasn’t. In a matter of seconds her eyes shifted past them and noise erupted once more as Alva and Aldarin frantically tried to tell her to go back to bed.

Her wrist snapped to the side in a swift, silencing motion. They all stilled again. Watching intently. She rounded the corner, staring at the body as she did so. She kneeled beside him, tears in her eyes.

Nidho could barely speak, he hardly whispered, “I’m so sorry, Maeri...”

“Why?” She wiped her eyes and sat back on her heels. “It isn’t him, you idiots. Nothing has changed, we will leave tomorrow.”

“But, what abou-”

“No!” She halted Nidho’s words. “We’ve already wasted a day, we were supposed to leave today! No ‘buts’ we leave tomorrow.” She looked from person to person, daring them to disagree. They all nodded quickly in agreement. 

\--)--)--(--(--

The next morning Maeri woke early and rode to Alva’s house. As she arrived she found Alva and Nidho mounting their horses, they started laughing when they saw her. “We were just about to go to you!” She chuckled briefly and turned her mare, gesturing for them to lead her to where they had put the boat. She followed them, each of their horses slightly slower with the added weight of their packs. Maeri had brought two bags of jerky and a sac of bread.

They arrived at the small dock where Aldarin stood waiting for them. He waved them over. As they dismounted he took their leads, offering to house their horses until their return. With warm thanks and goodbyes, the trio boarded the fishing boat, untied themselves from the doc, and began toward Andskoti.

\--)--)--(--(--

Lukell had only spent a day in his stable cell but he had already formulated several escape plans. Each of which drearily ended with his recapture or death. He determined it to be morning as light peaked through the hole his rope had been thrust through. The night prior he himself had been unvisited but he listened as his neighboring prisoners wept beneath filthy men until the sun had begun to rise. This business, he quickly realized, was entirely nocturnal. It would be harder to escape, they would be noticed leaving in daylight and missing at night. He decided he couldn’t just leave with Sabjorn, it would be more difficult to leave with everyone but he simply could not leave anyone behind. Not after he had heard their suffering, no, their cries were burned into his mind. But there was a worse sound. A much more haunting and sinister score that violently shook him. Silence.

Some of the women were silent. They didn’t protest. They didn’t whine or cry. They did nothing. They were silent. Some grew quieter as the night progressed, but two were notably silent throughout. Cells 6 and 7 were silent apart from the grunting men and creaking beds. It made Lukell feel sicker than he ever imagined he could. He knew one of them was Sabjorn, but which he wasn’t sure. 

He needed to get out, but he couldn’t plan it on his own. He listened intently, hearing no sign of Lifa’s presence. “Lifa?” Nothing.

“She isn’t here.” Another kind voice scarred with sorrow, but not Sabjorn’s.

“Good, we need to escape.” He was met with about seven or so violent shushes. 

“Do you want us all to die? be tortured?”

“This is already torture.” A somber voice rasped from the cell beside him, Sabjorn was in cell 7. “We are already dying.”

Lukell turned to the wall separating them. “So you agree, we must escape.”

He could faintly hear her sigh through the wood, “we cannot.” Lukell began to argue but she silenced him quickly. “You are new, you don’t understand. It is impossible. We are tied by ropes that lead outside, we cannot untie them. Even if we are to chew free, which we aren’t because the bite marks are always noticed by Lifa or one of her clients before we can, there is a series of locks that hold the doors shut. We are far too malnourished to stand a chance against them. Conspiracizing, like we are now, is incredibly risky. The walls between us are thicker than those leading outside and we hear each other just fine, any passerby hears us too. There is no way out.”

Lukell’s eyes began to well, he knew exactly why Maeri’s mother was so despondently pessimistic but they had to get out.  _ They had to. _ “There is! There is a way, we can find it, we can figure something out.”

“No.” She maintained, painfully unmoved by his pleas. 

“Please just reconsider the notion, if not for me, for Maeri, she-”

“You think I don’t think about her every day!? You dare suggest I am giving up out of selfishness?! Do you think I have not spent any moment throughout my dreadful existence in this shit-stained cell wondering if she is okay!?!”

“Sabjorn, that is not what I meant.” Lukell’s voice was shaky, but he could stay calm. He would stay calm. “I only meant that she has now lost two people to Lifa, one with the promise of returning with the other.” She was quiet again, waiting. “She was going to come here, you know. Lifa only took me to lure her out because she was struggling to find her alone. She rescued me because she is so brilliant, you know, she is so intelligent and brave, she actually got me. We were leaving, we were almost out of the woods when she discovered the reason for my abduction. I had to stop her, throw her into the arms of her friends to hold her back while I ran back to my captors. I went back to come here, to find you, to bring you to her.”

“That was stupid.”

“I know.” He sighed, “but there were only three other people with us. They couldn’t carry my weak body along  _ and _ drag her away from being your savior. Someone was going back to that camp and I would die before I let it be her.” He could just barely hear her whimper softly at the thought. “She needs you to come back. Please… for her, just reopen your mind to the possibility.”

“Fine,” she quietly breathed. 

“Hey,” another woman spoke up quietly, she was further and a little harder to hear. She sounded like she was probably across from Sabjorn and one cell down, cell 6. Her plea was distant but audible, “do you know my babies? My sons? Do you know them? My youngest was close with her. They’re together- well, I suppose they  _ were _ . Do you know him?”

Lukell racked his brain, remembering something he had learned soon after his arrival Heillstaðr. “Are you Aldarin’s mother? The Jarl’s wife?”

“Yes! You know him! Is he okay? Felaks- his brother- has his brother… improved?”

Lukell’s brows furrowed automatically at the name. “Improved?”

“He- he had done some terrible things… As a mother I can only hope there is good in him, tell me, is he good?”

His jaw clenched.  _ No. _ He thought.  _ No, your little bastard is pretty fucking far from “good” _ . “I- I haven’t interacted with him much, like I mentioned I am new to Heillstaðr. Maeri just rece-” He stopped, he heard footsteps, though distant he knew they were there. Everyone hushed with him, someone was clearly approaching. He heard the doors swing open as someone nearly skipped up and down the hall.

“For a moment I thought I heard you all talking!” Lifa’s sickening voice rang through the structure. He heard her halt in front of Lukell’s cell. “Maybe you all stopped just in time.” She pondered aloud. She slid the metal of his door aside and peered into his cell. He couldn’t see her lips but he could tell by her eyes that they were twisted into a thin, menacing grin. “Don’t worry dear, I know you were alone last night but I’m sure someone will come for you tonight.” She winked at him before sliding it shut again. He bit back his sobs, he had to refrain from getting overly emotional, he needed a clear head. He couldn’t cry because tears only spawned from cloudy minds, he needed his to be void of such impediments.


	30. Depressed Envy

Lifa was right, she made sure of it. All throughout the night he could hear her, yelling to passersby about her new product, singling out women walking by alone. She brought one woman to him, she was tall, blonde dreadlocks falling awkwardly stiff against her shoulders. She was easily bigger than Lukell and overpowered him quickly. He struggled but soon realized it was in vain -- he protested in a different way. The woman stormed off not long after she entered his cell, cursing at Lifa to “fix his dick before you advertise as if he isn’t broken.” Lifa began to beat him but left after being called by another customer. Like the night before, Lukell spent much of it trying to shield his ears from the sounds.

Lukell noticed the light beginning to shine through the hole in his cell. Before he could be thankful that the horrors had finally ended he heard a familiar voice say something quietly at the front of the stables. Lifa was laughing, “as long as you pay I don’t care what you do.” Someone small, with nervous and light steps, scurried up to his cell and opened the door. 

Sigbrina stood before him, blushing wildly and looking everywhere but his eyes. She eventually approached him, undressing them both as he lay still. He looked to the side and began focussing on the wall. Staring at a particular knot in the wood, detangling it until it resembled something he could be hopeful for. Much to his dismay, no matter how close he got to seeing something he needed, someone he loved, Sigbrina would move, snapping him back to reality where wood was just wood. She faced the same issue the blonde before her had faced, the issues that had infuriated Lifa before they returned to Andskoti. Unlike the previous two, Sigbrina didn’t storm off, she didn’t flush with anger, she sighed despondently and started to cuddle him. While Lukell was grateful for the sexual ceasefire, the intimacy laced within the very fabric of cuddling was almost more sickening to him. He mulled it over for what felt like days, decided he preferred it to the attempted rape.

He couldn’t resist it anymore, despite the small woman still on his chest he began to sob. He tried desperately to keep it quiet, staring at the hole in the wall, wishing light would return faster. When it occurred to him that Sigbrina still didn’t have to leave when the sun came up he sobbed harder. Everything was so out of his control, how could he do this, how could he help Lifa’s other prisoners, how could he save Maeri’s mother? He began to shake. Sigbrina finally noticed. She snapped up, staring into his red eyes. She spent a moment watching the tears flooding down his face, pausing at the puddle forming beside his head. Eventually, she whispered to him, “what’s wrong?” He glared at her before swiftly softening his gaze, an idea suddenly forming in his mind.

“I need to go back...” He sobbed, nearly silent. “My little sister, she’s just a baby, she’s all alone.” He closed his eyes, imagining Julaeka’s tear-ridden face when she would have discovered he was gone. “She needs me...”

“Oh...” Sigbrina stared at his eyes, as if she could see a lie floating in the water around them, any reason to not pity him. She was failing miserably to do so. “I- how- she has no one else?”

He shook his head somberly, “our parents are dead, they-” he stopped, quickly considering his next step. This woman was eager to pity, she hummed her desired serenity while frantically worrying about. He didn’t know her well but he could gage her relationship with Lifa was incredibly one-sided. And based almost purely on the raw look in her eyes at that very moment he decided she was conflicted about her actions, knowing deep down that she was hurting people and feeling terrible for it but wanting desperately to fit in and be liked by Lifa. He swallowed and took the risk, “they were killed by y-”  _ no _ , he thought, “by the Illting a couple of years ago.”

“Oh...” her whisper was almost impossible to hear. She shuddered, abruptly standing and gathering her clothes and redressed. Silently, she left his cell.

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

A couple more days dragged on, all mirroring the last. Lukell would usually spend moments between Lifa’s presence telling Sabjorn and Aldarin’s mother, Emala, about their children. He was starting to run out of things to say. They hardly discussed their escape, Lukell needed Lifa to be as unaware as possible. Sigbrina would visit him at night, she was the only one to do so as word of his limp dick spread through Andskoti. Each night she would be less invasive of him, at first she didn’t undress him, the next night she stayed clothed. Tonight she hadn’t cuddled with him as she had been doing each night before. Instead, she just sat beside him on his bed as he wept like he had each night before. She usually asked questions, asked about his sister, his childhood, occasionally she asked about Maeri. She would look incredibly despondent when he described how much he loved Maeri, almost emulating a depressed envy. She hadn’t spoken at all tonight until finally, she looked at him. 

“Lifa said she’s going to kill you if you remain so useless...” she whispered, quickly returning to looking away from him.

He didn’t respond, not with words anyway, he sunk his head into his hands and sobbed. Focusing on how hopeless his situation seemed and not how hopeful he was for the consequences of his new death sentence.

“I think she was just kidding...” Sigbrina quietly justified.

Lukell’s sorrow intensified as his fear helped his small sliver of hope to plummet.  _ Of course she would justify,  _ he thought,  _ this will never work. _

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

The next day she came to him during the day, her urgency truly unsettling to him. Her voice was as shaky as her body as she trembled before him, swiftly closing the door behind her. She paced back and forth. The stables’ door swung open, “Sigbrina?!” Lifa called into the hall. The redhead clamped her right hand over her mouth as if she needed it to restrain herself from responding. “Where’d the dumb bitch run off to?” Lifa muttered to herself, loud enough to hear as she began to leave. She paused again, probably hoping Sigbrina would respond to the insult. With no reason to stay she finally left.

Sigbrina looked at him, her eyes frantic with fear. She looked nervous and unsure. Suddenly she blurted out, “I want to help you escape.”

He smiled, unable to contain his explosion of joy. He knew it wouldn’t be that easy but those six words opened a door for him that was previously deadbolted shut. “Thank you,” he began, a different kind of tear s soaking his eyes, “thank you, thank you.” He didn’t know what else to say.

“But we must run away together.” He paused and then nodded understandingly. “I can’t stay here if I help you, I’m risking myself just talking to you, I-” She was spiraling into a nervous wreck, she looked like she was seconds from changing her mind.

“Sigbrina,” he stopped her, “why did you decide to help me?”

She looked to the side, “she wasn’t kidding, Lifa- it wasn’t a joke. She plans to kill you tomorrow, she’s selling tickets for it right now. She’s looking for me to help spread the word.” She shook her head, “I couldn’t let that happen, the thought- it made me sick. Your sister- you- you love someone- you need to go back.” 

He smiled at her, “thank you, Sigbrina.”

She swallowed and smiled weakly in response, “I thought I could cut your rope tonight and we could leave at dusk, it would still be a little dark and no one would be here so late… I don’t know...”

“Sounds perfect,” he rushed up. Just close enough to reach her, he hugged her. It was the first time he had returned any sort of affection for her and it worked. 

When he let go she smiled, nodding confidently. “Be ready, at dusk.” He nodded.

She quickly left, running out through some back entrance and distancing herself from the stables as quickly as possible.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! This doesn't really have anything to do with this chapter but for future reference (cause I'm not quite sure where to go) what do y'all ship for Adrien? I usually like Adrigami but sometimes I'm swayed depending on stuff and I have yet to fins Kagami into this story so ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯. Any thoughts?


	31. Don't you want to leave?

The night was ending and Lukell was growing worried. There was still a short while from dusk but Sigbrina said she would cut his rope beforehand and he needed time to rescue the others -- he also knew Sigbrina did not intend to rescue everyone. He was placing all of his eggs in a basket labeled ‘she won’t care.’ Just as his fears were intensifying he heard shuffling through the hole his rope was fed through. He heard some light sawing and then the pull on his neck loosened greatly. He rushed to the hole, pulling his severed rope through and whispering in its wake. “Thank you!”

“Lifa is closing after the two people still inside leave, I will be back very soon. We will leave a little earlier than planned.”

“Okay.” She ran away. 

That was wonderful news. He would have more time to cut everyone else free. 

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

Just as she had told him, Sigbrina returned swiftly after he heard the front doors of the stables close. She snuck in the way she had the other day and opened his door, beckoning him out of his despair. As soon as he left the cell she turned to run but he stopped her with a whisper; “no, wait!”

“What?” She turned around, exasperated and a little anger. She was clearly incredibly stressed by the situation. Guilt began piling in his stomach for what he was putting her through but it had to happen. She would be better off leaving the Illting anyway. At least, that was how he justified what he had to say next.

“We need to get the rest.”

“No! We don’t have time and we’ll be spotted! We’re leaving now.”

“No. I’m sorry but that can’t happen. If we start now we can free them all in time to leave undetected. Like you said, we are leaving earlier than we initially planned to. We have this time.” She was uneasy, her eyes darting around as she shifted her weight on her feet, shifted between the options. He didn’t want to give her time to make the wrong decision. He didn’t want to waste what little time they had. “Give me your knife.”

“Huh?”

“Give me your knife so I can save these women.” She didn’t move. “Now!”

“Okay, okay...” She hurriedly pulled a knife from her belt, finger trembling as they tugged at the leather. She held it out to him.

“Thank you.” He turned away from her and began working his way down the stalls. He started with 8. Opening the door he immediately recognized the girl from his village again. “Salut, allons-y maintenant.” _ Let’s go now. _ She nodded eagerly and held out her rope for him to cut. He did so quickly and left the cell, the girl following close behind. 

He nearly ran into Sigbrina when he walked through the door. She looked at him like she was struggling to speak, finally, she told him what was bouncing around her timid mind. “We should go now, you have one. Let us leave. Now.”

“I am not leaving without the rest.” Before she could protest he continued, “If I don’t leave Lifa will see my rope has been cut. She will know I couldn’t have done it myself. I’m sorry Sigbrina, but either you let me save the rest or we both die tomorrow.” He bit his tongue for the harsh words. 

“Or-” she appeared to be mulling something over, “or I can help you free them.” She straightened as she spoke. Channeling what confidence she had, knowing she was out of other choices. 

“That would be perfect.” He smiled warmly at her, trying to express his gratitude and every way possible. She hurried down to the front of the stables and he began unlocking the next cell -- Sabjorn’s cell.

He smiled at her as he opened the door. In her terrible state her happiness shined brighter than the sun, and like a mirror it shone from Lukell as well. “Let us leave.” He whispered, cutting her rope. Once he had freed her she hugged him. 

“You are remarkable, I’m so gracious for my daughter’s amazing taste in men.”

He beamed at her, “Sabjorn, everything your daughter does is amazing. She’s an amazing girl.”

Freeing Emala from cell 6 was very similar to Sabjorn, the joy so poignant it almost stung. Sigbrina was already at cell 5 so he just moved down to cell 4. He quickly freed the woman, she was a little more talkative. She must have been relatively new herself. She said her name was Botvi and that she had been taken, alongside Rindr in the cell across from her, from Vistbú at the beginning of this season. He tried to talk to her quietly, he didn’t want to raise alarm but he could tell the silent pause that fell while he sawed at her rope made her more anxious. 

“I am not originally Dane, what is Vistbú?”

She chuckled, mimicking his miniscule volume. “Vistbú is a large farming village near Liðbú.” She rolled her eyes when she saw his confusion. “Liðbú is the capital of the Liðting territory. Our clan is notoriously hospitable, we are long-standing allies with your Giptung.” 

“Oh, I see.” He was nearly finished on her rope, it was harder to cut through than Emala and Sabjorn’s, it was newer. He nodded as he focussed his eyes on the tearing rope.

“Very few of us are Viking, we are mostly farmers. We trade our grains and livestock from some of the Giptung riches after raiding season ends. Our territory is kind of small, we only have three large villages. Vistbú is the largest, slightly bigger than Liðbú. Mostly because it’s mostly farmland. We produce the majority of the food for the clan. Hestrbý breeds horses and sells them to whoever comes-”

A loud, immediately muffled, howl cut Botvi off. Lukell had just cut through her rope. He stood and ran toward where the sound had come from. In cell 5, Sigbrina stood behind an older woman. She was undoubtedly the oldest there. Sigbrina’s hand was clamped around the woman’s mouth. It was the only thing blocking her screaming.

“What happened?” His brows furrowed at Sigbrina.

“She said she didn’t want to leave! I tried to reason with her and she began screaming!” They were trying desperately hard to be quiet. They knew that sound must have alerted someone nearby. They knew Lifa was probably on her way now. This woman may have just ruined their chances and they needed to leave immediately. 

“Why won’t you leave?” He questioned the woman. “Don’t you want to leave?”

Sigbrina gasped as the woman bit at her fingers. She stared at Lukell as she spoke. “I have been here so long. I am better off here, they will see you. They will kill you all.”

“Veny, you know she will kill you soon too. As soon as she doesn’t think you’re useful anymore.”

“I have more time in here than I would with you idiots. If you don’t leave me now I will scream again.”

Sigbrina and Lukell shared a quick, silent glance.  _ Fine _ , he thought, _ this was her choice _ . They left the cell to find the rest of the women clumped together in the back of the hall. Sigbrina led the way, swiftly and quietly opening the back and gesturing for the group to follow her. Once they were all outside of the building she pointed to the direction they should run, quickly explaining that there would be no one in that section of the woods. 

They ran. 

Immediately after they were no longer hidden in the shadow of the stables they were spotted. It was nearly pitch black outside but the slightest traces of morning were beginning to shine through. Lukell realized anyone who had been outside for a while would have eyes adjusted well enough to see movement. But he realized it too late. 

He heard a man bellow from behind them, “THERE THEY ARE!” He didn’t dare look back as what sounded like a stampede began to trail them. Lifa must have enlisted a small army. At least they had a head start. Lukell made sure Sabjorn and Emala were ahead of him as he sped toward the forest. He heard arrows begin whistling by and starting running in a more fluid line in an attempt to avoid being hit.

He was just beginning to think they were all far enough ahead when he heard a thud to his left. He braved a glance over his shoulder and one of the women was on the ground, struggling under some man. Lukell had to keep running, he wanted to help her but he knew he couldn’t. He didn’t even know her name.

They were so close to the woods. He could see Botvi to his right in the corner of his eyes. He was watching through those peripherals when his heart sunk as an arrow pierced through her shoulder. Amazingly, she kept moving, barely stuttered in her advancement toward escape. Then a second arrow crashed through her legs and she was forced over. She fell to the ground with a thud and a cry. She screamed “NO!” Her pain bleeding through each of her blood-curdling screech she let out. Lukell wanted to turn and lift her but he couldn’t stop. When he looked over his shoulder he saw one of the men raising an axe over her head. He quickly turned his head forward again. 

The screaming stopped.

They were at the edge of the forest, tearing through the trees, careful not to slow too gravely as they weaved through the trunks. They were finally covered from the arrows but there was still a group on their tail. He could hear as more and more men began tapering off as they gave up on the chase. He had lost sight of most of the other people, he was with Sabjorn though. He made sure to stay near her. They kept pushing forward, out of breath, malnourished and exhausted. 

Another set of screams erupted close to them. Way too close to them. They ran faster. Someone else had fallen, it was just a matter of who now. 

The sun was completely up. They hadn’t heard anyone nearby for what seemed like long enough. “Sabjorn?” Lukell quietly called to her. 

“What?” She breathed.

He reached for her shoulder, gently stopping her. “We need to take a break. We will surely die of exhaustion if we don’t.”

She nodded.

“There’s a stream nearby, I can hear it. Let’s go drink some water and then we can keep moving.”

“Yes, yes that’s a good idea.” She was panting. He was panting. They moved much more slowly toward the river, out of energy and adrenaline. 

It was really nearby, they arrived at the bank quickly despite their sluggish pace. They fell to the ground, kneeling and cupping up handfuls of water. They drank eagerly. Lukell knew he needed water but he hadn’t felt it until that moment. He was scooping up the water almost sloppily, dropping some as it fell through the cracks in fingers. He was finally catching his breath. He looked over, Sabjorn was doing the same. They sighed almost simultaneously. Before his joy for the escape kicked in, before he could celebrate, Lukell heard a twig snap nearby. He whipped his head around, his heart immediately beginning to race.


	32. Where did she go?

With her hands up in a display of allyship, Sigbrina slowly emerged from the brush that Sabjorn and Lukell were staring so intently at. “You made it...” she breathed. Her eyes met the water and she dove for it, drinking it as eagerly as they had.

Lukell and Sabjorn let out their breath. “Where are the rest?” Sigbrina sloppily gestured behind her without looking. As if on cue, perhaps they were, Emala and the girl from cell 5 stepped from the same brush. “Wow, you all made it...”

“No...” Emala sighed shakily, her voice shivering. “We did not  _ all _ make it.”

Sigbrina looked to her sympathetically, “I’m sorry, we could not go back for her.”

“Who?” Lukell looked from person to person, trying to clear his mind enough to figure out who was missing.

Sigbrina turned her gaze to him, “I believe her name was Falr.”

“It was Flore.” Emala corrected her. “The Frankish girl.”

Lukell looked back into the river. His watery reflection flashed its eyes back at him and yet he felt his own growing wet. She was his only connection to home-  _ stop thinking like that! _ He thought to himself,  _ you still have Julaeka. You have a new home to get back to. _ “We need to go.”

“Agreed.” Sigbrina nodded. “This is an island, we need to move South. There should be boats along the shore and it’s closer to your territory.” She looked up to the midday sun, and smiled. “We can just keep moving forward.”

Lukell stood. He looked around the group before helping Sabjorn up, “we can move slowly as to not exhaust ourselves but Lifa will surely send people after us if she hasn’t already. We must travel with haste.” The group nodded, continuing to slurp from the river. Lukell scanned the area, noticing a relatively thick fallen branch near the river. He walked over to it, picking it up and inspecting it.  _ Hollow,  _ he thought _ , and light _ . He couldn’t see any holes or gashes in its sides. He returned to the group, asking Sigbrina for a knife before examining the trees surrounding them. He cut the softened wood so that he held three small thirds of the branch. He lifted a rock from the river bank and lined it up with the branch, tossing it aside and repeating the process with a slightly smaller stone and another and another. 

“What are you doing?” Sigbrina asked.

“Hold on, you will see in a moment.” She cocked a brow at him. “Also, did you happen to notice any particularly sappy trees near here?”

Her brows somehow moved more dramatically, “uh, I don’t know.” She looked up as if her recollection was spread across the air before her. “There was… yeah there was one we saw just before I found you two. That way?” She pointed weakly back the way she came.

“Thank you,” he smiled. He sped over, taking one of his branch thirds with him. He picked up a small stick and scraped the sap off of the tree. He spread the sticky substance against the inside of his branch. It spread thin and hardened quickly so he worked with speed. He heavily re-coated the interior of the bottom before rushing back to the river. He shook one of the rocks he had set aside under the water hastily before shoving them into the bottom end of the log. Then he sat, watching his group catch their breath.

Sigbrina returned to his side. “What are they?”

“They’re flasks,” he explained, “well- hopefully.” He leaned over, gently easing his contraptions under the water and letting it fill before pulling it back up. He inspected it, the sap seemed to have hardened quickly from the cold. The water was not leaving from the side or the bottom of the log. He beamed at it. “It works! It works!”

“How- how did you do that!?” She couldn’t hide her smile behind her disbelief. 

“Quick, let’s make the other two!”

“Okay!” He jumped to his feet and ran back to the tree, his construction and an empty branch piece in each hand. Sigbrina followed with the other hollow piece. He put the working flask on the ground as he showed her exactly what he had done to the first branch section. “But wait,” she looked at him, “how will he keep them from spilling while we move?”

He thought for a moment, staring at his contraption. Some water had already spilled on the short walk to the tree. He picked it up and poured some of it out, lining the top of the log with more sap. He took one of the cleaned stones from Sigbrina and plugged the top half as well.

“Wait! Lukell!” She dropped her face in her hands, “now we can’t drink it!!” She watched him shake his head, his calmness annoying her. Before she could continue to scold him he carved a small hole into the log’s side with the knife. He plugged it with another twig. 

“There.” He pulled the twig out and sipped from the flask. “This will work.” 

The two quickly constructed two more flasks of the same design, filling them with as much water as they could. The group began moving again.

-)-(-(--)-)-(-

They had been traveling for a while, the night was beginning to fall again. Sigbrina assured them that the journey would take two days at most so Lukell felt confident in their closeness to escape. Just as he was smiling to himself about the thought of seeing his sister again, the thought of all the ways he would show Maeri how much he missed her, the thought of her and Tomin’s joy for the return of Sabjorn, Aldarin’s joy for the return of Emala, Emala-  _ where did she go? _ Lukell’s smile faded immediately as he frantically looked through the group, squinting to see in the dimming light. “Where is Emala?” He whispered just in case. Everyone stopped. They scanned their surroundings, standing back to back in a circle.

“There!” Sabjorn pointed to the silhouette of a woman against a tree to the left of the group. Lukell quietly gestured for them to be quiet while he approached her. 

“Emala?” He whispered, she didn’t move. “Emala, what are you doing? We need to keep-”

“Sh!” She pointed to a set of footsteps leading to a tall blonde man in the distance, his back was to them as he walked the way they were coming from. 

“Oh.” Lukell sighed, “good observation, we will be extra quiet.” He moved to rejoin the group but she didn’t follow.

“No,” she muttered, “that’s one of my boys.”

Lukell looked at the man again, he supposed it could have been Aldarin. He might have come to the island with rescue plans, still drowning in guilt. Lukell frowned, approaching this man could mean a swifter safety but if it wasn’t Aldarin it would put them at great risk. Lukell wouldn’t want to kill anyone. How would he fix it if she was wrong? If she was right, not stopping him could lead to his death. Lukell stopped thinking. He breathed. He closed his eyes. He decided he would take one more look at the man and decide. He opened his eyes. 

Emala was gone.

She had run after him. She was too far to stop, she began calling after him. “Wait! Wait please!” Lukell whipped around, shushing the other women and dropping out of sight. 

The man turned to her, she was right! It was Aldarin. Lukell nearly revealed himself but something forbade him from moving. 

“Mom?”

“Oh my sweet boy!” She jumped to hug him, he smiled. He just smiled.  _ That’s all!? _ Lukell thought. He was astonished, Aldarin talked so highly of his mother yet she treated her so casually. “Why are you here!?”

“I came to find you.” He said sweetly. 

“Well here I am! Let’s go home!” 

He shook his head at her perplexed face. “I am going to Andskoti.”

“Why!? That place is hell! You have already found me!”

“Why are you free? Who let you out? Are you with other people?” He started looking around quickly, scanning the trees. His eyes passed over Lukell seamlessly, he was well hidden.

“No!” She hastily answered, her voice beginning to shake. “No I am alone. My captor freed me, she said I was no longer of use to her. She left me in the woods to die. I have been wandering alone for days! Why would you want to go there??”

He exhaled impatiently. “I have learned more of these people and I want to talk to their leader. Come with me.”

“I can’t go back there!” She was angry now, her shaking voice vibrating with fury. “I can’t live like that again! I’d rather die!”

“Then die you will!” He bellowed at her, mimicking her anger. “Either you come with me or die out here! If you return with me I won’t allow you to live so miserably.” She shook her head so frantically she nearly fell over. He pushed against her shoulder, toppling her feeble, dizzy body. She whimpered, staring at him with pure confusion. “Fine bitch, die then.” 

He turned on his heel and continued walking, leaving the broken woman in his wake. Lukell watched him walk away, he waited. Emala wasn’t moving. He needed to go get her. He could not leave without her. But he couldn’t risk him hearing and they needed to start moving immediately. He returned to the group after a short while of silence. “I will get her and we will keep moving.” 

“No,” Sigbrina shook her head. “Your life is too precious.” She sighed shakily, “I will get her.”

Lukell wanted to argue but part of him stopped him, the part of him that shamefully agreed. He was embarrassed and ashamed that he could not argue with her because all he could selfishly think of was his sister and Maeri and how important it was that he returned to them alive. Sigbrina laid a gentle hand on his shoulder before beginning her way toward Emala.

\--)-(----)-(--

Nidho jumped from the boat with a splash, pulling the boat behind him as he waded to the shore. Alva hopped out as they got closer, then Maeri. They pulled the boat until it was beached. Nidho looked at her. “We have arrived.”


	33. It was never for nothing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry I've been a bit sloppy lately, there is a lot happening in my life right now. So as a thank you for your patience here is a longer chapter than usual, and perhaps there will be another chapter sooner than later...! Happy Yuletide everyone!

Sigbrina inched toward Emala, careful not to make noise. The woman hadn’t moved, she lay like a puddle against the ground. As soon as she reached her she tenderly placed her hand on her shoulder. “Emala, Em, come on we must continue. We are nearly gone.”

She made no noise but a whimper.

“Please,” Sigbrina begged. She gently pushed Emala off of the ground, coaxing her up with soft encouragements.

When they reunited with the group soon after Emala nearly collapsed again, she sobbed uncontrollably as Lukell looked around anxiously. “Why?” She wept, “why would my boy do such a thing?” Her words were almost incoherent between sobs. 

Sigbrina hugged her, she wrapped her arms around her and rubbed soft circles against her back. “I’m sorry Emala, we must leave now. We must go to your home, you have another son to return to, no?” She nodded shakily. “Then come, we must get back to him. Move for him, you can be still and weep on the boat.” She exhaled, gathering her strength to continue.

As they began moving again Lukell sank through the formation of the group to her side, behind everyone else. “That was Felaks, I am sure of it.” He whispered to her.

She hummed -- more of a whimper -- in agreement. “Yes, as soon as I approached I could see that his hair was knotted back, Aldarin always hated tying his hair,” she explained. “I think he hated the pull of it, that pinch when your hair is being woven and tugged at it. His father was so furious with him for it, you know,” she sighed, “he was just scared, though. His hair would get in his eyes so often, it’s a disadvantage when fighting.”

Lukell nodded, “I’m sure the thought of losing a child -- to something so frivolous no less -- is one of the most horrific one can have.”

“Yes.” The s of her concurrence almost hissed as it caught in her lips. “The only worse thought is one of mourning such a reality.” Her voice hitched on the space between  _ mourning _ and  _ such _ as if something were buried in the divot between the words, almost leading her to trip on the sentence as she trekked through it.

Lukell paused, allowing the silence between them to bloom before he plucked it. “I have come to know Aldarin very well in my short time at Heillstaðr, he is truly a wonderful man. You will be proud when you see him again.” He watched tentatively as her lips curled at the idea. “He is a brilliant fighter, although he does not care to perpetuate the practice. He has many dreams for a peaceful society where he can farm alongside the Danes and the Franks.”

Emala chuckled, “still?” She looked at him, practically beaming as she spoke of her son’s childhood. “He always fantasized about a beautiful city of tranquility and happiness. When he was a small boy he had this large set of wooden figurines, houses, animals, people, and he had arranged them into this beautiful little town. Each yuletide all he asked for were more figurines. It was adorable, watching him build that little dream into a great city.” Her face darkened, “I remember the day he ran to me weeping, crying that his brother had smashed the thing with his new axe.”

Lukell laid his arm across her shoulders, “He still has that dream.” He whispered comfortingly, “I doubt anything could remove it from his mind.” He smiled at her, “he once told me all of his memories with you were wonderful, he said he hoped to be like you.”

“Really? I-” She was cut off by a loud gasp and the sound of sobbing in front of them. Lukell froze, stretching his neck and straining his eyes to see what had just happened. It was so dark now that even with his eyes adjusted he only saw some steps ahead of himself.

“My baby!” He heard Sabjorn’s voice soar through the air and his heart jumped. He rushed forward gently pushing through the small circle that had formed, Emala quick behind him. He trembled as his eyes registered the image before him. Sabjorn stood with her side toward him, hugging… hugging…  _ Maeri _ . 

Lukell began panting, his heart suddenly racing as he stared at her eyes. They were closed with joy as he held her mother. He focused all of his strength on restraining himself for he would hate to ruin their moment. As soon as Sabjorn let go, however, he lunged toward Maeri, knocked them both over as he coiled around her. He buried his face in her shoulder as she gasped from the fall. He realized her lips were moving before the blood rushing in his ears subsided enough for him to hear her words. “I love you, I love you, I love you,” she was practically breathing the phrase against his neck. He moved up, using his forearms to hold himself above her only to crash his lips down upon hers moments later.

“I know, my love, I know.” His thumb traced her cheek when he finally pulled away, making an effort to help her up as he himself began to stand. 

“You didn’t let me say it.” She whined. Suddenly her eyes grew pointed as she scowled at him. She slapped him and maybe it was the general excitement of the moment but  _ boy _ was it hot. “You asshole! I can’t believe you did that!” Luckily she didn’t seem to notice his eyes’ brief cloudiness.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” His hand held her cheek, he was eager to touch her in any way he could. “I couldn’t let you do it.” In that moment the situation at hand returned to him. “We must go! Let’s get out of her now.”

“Agreed.” Alva appeared out of nowhere, oh and Nidho was there too. 

“Do you have a boat?” Sigbrina asked. 

Alva’s eyes darted around the group before she answered, “yes, we do.”  _ How peculiar,  _ Lukell thought. She gestured for the group to follow and she turned back the way she came. 

Alva led the way, walking ahead of everyone else. Maeri, trapped between Sabjorn and Lukell, walked just behind her, each of her hands held by the loved ones at her sides. Behind them were Nidho and Emala, he seemed to have picked up where Lukell had left off, telling Emala everything about Aldarin to keep her spirits up. Finally, at the back of the formation were Sigbrina and Rindr, the other girl to survive the escape. Lukell could just barely recall the conversation he had with one of the girls, Botvi, before they ran and she was struck down. He remembered her mentioning Rindr and her were from the same clan or something along those lines. The thought was flimsy and soon faded completely. The only thing on his mind was the feeling of Maeri’s hand in his. The way she smiled when her eyes darted between him and Sabjorn.

\--)--)--(--(--

When they arrived at the boat it was still rather dark out. Alva turned to face the group somberly, shifting her weight and looking around. “So, we’re here...” she trailed off. Maeri’s stomach dropped, she had been too excited about her reunions to think properly and a major issue had just occurred to her. She subconsciously mimicked Alva, quickly looking around to count heads before looking down as tears began welling in her eyes.  _ Why could nothing be easy?  _ She thought. 

A red-headed woman who had been traveling with Lukell squinted at the boat. “It seems a bit… small?”

Alva swallowed, Maeri wanted to help but she didn’t have the energy. “Um, so, we didn’t realize there would be this many people to return with and...” She started frantically scratching the back of her head. Maeri saw Lukell’s face drop out of the corner of her eye. Nidho,  _ what a sweetheart _ , Maeri thought, jumped in to try to alleviate some pressure from his love’s shoulders.

“I- We- The boat-” but he soon found himself faltering too. He shook his head and swallowed, draping his arm across Alva’s shoulders. “The boat holds six people maximum.” He looked directly at the red-head and the girl she was walking with, very unsubtly directing his apology to them.

“I see.” She said pensively.

The other girl gasped “no, no you have got to be fucking joking! I need to leave! I need to leave here!” The red-head shushed her with a hug.

“They were not part of the original plan,” she reminded her. “I said there would be boats along this shore and there are, we will go find one.”

“Are you sure?” Lukell chimed in, his voice cautious and painfully apologetic.

She nodded, “yes, it’s okay. This was originally my plan. We will follow behind you as soon as we find a vessel.”

“Ok,” he sighed, “thank you Sigbrina. You are the reason for our freedom.”

She smiled wistfully, “I’m sorry for everything.” With that she turned, leading the other woman down the shore.

Alva had already climbed into the boat when Maeri turned back to it, “come on,” she called, “let’s go.” Everyone nodded in agreement, rushing into the boat. Nidho pushed it from the beach before hopping in himself, he and Lukell began to row. Maeri sat at the back of the boat, beside her mother. Sabjorn was interrogating her about her life, begging for details and stories. Emala sat next to Alva, she looked rather uncomfortable. Maeri tried not to pay it mind but she couldn’t help but notice the way Emala looked at Alva, like she pitied her or something. 

“What about your father? How is he?” Sabjorn asked, resting her head on her daughter’s shoulder.

She chuckled, “he is well. He misses you dearly.”

She clicked her tongue, “how dare he allow you to do this...”

“Oh please, he hardly allowed me; I gave him no choice.”

Sabjorn lifted her head, looking at Maeri with great concern, “I may not have even been alive, your journey was a suicide mission and it was possibly for nothing! You cannot just take risks like that!”

“No! Sabjorn, it was never for nothing. Lifa had revealed that you were alive and regardless she had Luka. And it was no suicide mission! I have Alva,” she gestured frantically to her friend across the boat, suddenly realizing everyone aboard was listening to their conversation now, “Alva is brilliant! She is as much a strategist as she is a fighter- As am I! You think I did this without thinking it through?!”

Sabjorn sighed, lifting her palms in an attempt to calm her. “I did not mean to offend you, Maeri. It is just frightening to imagine your child in danger.” She waved her hand, slowly returning her head to Maeri’s shoulder. “One day you will understand.” Maeri just barely caught her mother’s wink to the quickly reddening Lukell ahead of her before Sabjorn fully settled against her. Maeri started smirking, thoroughly enjoying Lukell’s suddenly heightened interest in rowing. “Now,” Sabjorn sighed, “tell me a story. Tell me about something I have missed.”

“Well, let’s see...” she flipped through the past few years before deciding to start at the beginning. “Soon after you were taken, Aldarin and I realized we were not in Freya’s favor. So we separated and...” she rambled on and on before she realized her mother had begun to sleep. She watched her, a small smile growing on her face. A little part of her still felt like the moment was unreal.

“You know, I really like your mother.” Lukell drew her attention back to the rest of the world. 

Her smile flourished further, “she really is wonderful, isn’t she?”

He nodded gently, the rising sun illuminating the right side of his face.  _ He’s so gorgeous _ , she thought. “I missed you,” he whispered suddenly. His face dropped like an anchor, plunging deep into a sea of sadness. His voice was pained, nearly inaudible as he leaned desperately toward her. “The thought of you was sometimes the only rope to which I could cling for hope… hope of escape… hope of finding you.” He bit back what sounded like a small cry as his eyes dove into hers. She nearly gasped at the feeling that suddenly washed over her.

“I missed you too, Luka...” She reached for him, her hand gracefully cupping his cheek. His eyes closed as he leaned into her touch, but as they retreated from her own she felt her soul was still touched by his sorrow. She shivered, her stomach was tied into the strangest bow. He was so broken yet so  _ joyful _ , he was back but where he was… she found herself taking a deep breath almost to calm herself as much as she intended to comfort him. And when she looked at him -- the way his lips wilted ever so slightly -- she felt herself once again dipping into his despair. 

She pondered this effect he seemed to have, how he could extend his feelings. She hadn’t thought of it like that before, she thought he just had a calming aura in his ambience, washing over those around him, but now that she felt his sadness so thoroughly, from just a short look, she knew he must have some power about him. His eyes cracked open so gently as he looked up at her through his eyelashes. His lips curled upwards for a change as he sighed, “you are so beautiful in the morning light.”

“As are you,” she chuckled quietly. “Julaeka is going to be so happy when she sees you.” His head straighten slightly, careful not to lose her touch against his cheek. His eyes locked onto hers and she felt that twist in her stomach once more, he was so excited to see her yet so angry to have left her. 

“I’m excited to return to her.” He smiled weakly. He took a deep breath, his exhale seeming to draw his darker thoughts from their shadows. “Maeri, I- I know I did not go through the worst of it, not like the women, like your mother,” his eyes seemed to dart around and for once she got the sense that he was uncomfortable: not quite unhappy, though he certainly had reason to be, but like he was crossing a line he preferred to walk alongside. He exhaled rushedly, shaking his head as if he needed to clear some restraining thoughts, “I don’t think I-” He looked out to the ocean before returning to her. There was anguish in his eyes before he quickly shut them, shaking his head once more. “I’m sorry, I’m not quite sure where I was going with that.” He chuckled weakly, “I think I am just tired, eager to rest back at home.”

_ Home _ , she thought, it was his home now, thanks to her. Her heart fluttered slightly, maybe because she had spent so long apart from him, maybe she was giddy on the reunion, the success. Why, she could not quite place, but his mention of home plunged her mind into visions of a future, bright with happiness and cheer as they danced around, playing with children who resembled them so. “Me too,” she heard herself commiserate. “My sweet serpent, our life shall be so beautiful.” She hadn’t intended to speak that thought but meant it nonetheless. And oh his smile was worth the brief fear of an unwanted reaction. He leaned toward her and she dared to meet him halfway, careful not to wake Sabjorn.

Their kiss seemed electrified, quite literally leaving her lips tingling when she pulled away all too soon. He seemed to have felt it too, affectionately running his thumb over his lips as he settled back onto his seat. “After we have returned and I have gotten some rest,” his voice dropped suddenly to a husky whisper, “I will show you how much I’ve missed you.” He leaned back, leaving her excited and curious, and exchanged nods with Nidho before beginning rowing again.


	34. Mmmother?

The boat tapped against the dock with a thud, Alva jumped out immediately. “Yes!” She shouted, “home!” She ran up the dock calling for her friend, “Aldarin! Aldarin come! You must see! Aldarin!” By the time everyone had climbed onto land she was returning with the blonde in toe. They were all stretching, nearly blocking Emala entirely from his view. When they moved to greet Aldarin she was revealed to him. As his eyes recognized the woman before him he dropped to his knees.

“Mmmother?” He sounded as if he didn’t trust himself to say it aloud, as if she might vanish if he did.

“Aldarin! My boy!” She ran toward him and hugged him so fervently they nearly fell from the dock. “Oh how I have missed you my sweet, sweet son! You must tell me everything I’ve missed!”

He smiled into her neck, practically glowing with joy. “I love you, I missed you so much.” He spoke shakily. 

“I know, I know, I love you too.” The group admired the happy reunion silently, until it became apparent that they were not going to move any time soon.

“Come now,” Alva finally interrupted, “let’s get off this dock and truly go home!” Without a word they all eagerly followed her, heading toward the great hall.

They entered the hall slowly, there was a small meeting already taking place between the Earl and some other vikings. The Earl looked up and the sound of the door closing and abruptly stood, silencing the other men in the room and immediately drawing the attention of second-hand, Nattfari. He stared at the newcomers, eyes wide with disbelief, before finally breaking the quiet; “Emala...?”

“Gabrjal!” She called back to him, pushing her way through the small crowd. He ran to her, sweeping her up in a great hug.

“I thought you were gone,” he cried into her shoulder, “how are you here?”

“They saved me! Lukell, Maeri, Nidho,... Alva.” The pause before Alva’s name did not go unnoticed as the teens exchanged confused looks. 

“Luk-? Oh the slave boy,” he said after observing the group. His eyes never settled on Alva like it did the rest. “Thank you, all of you, so much.” He closed his eyes again, still wrapped in the hug. He never truly parted from her, just loosened his grip so she could turn to face the group. Her bright smile truly was enchanting,  _ and contagious, _ Maeri thought, though the curl of her lips didn’t erase her suspicion. “We shall have a great feast tonight!” He declared, “but for now, everyone must leave! Let me catch up with my wife!” He kissed her cheek affectionately, though the notion led Aldarin to be the first to rush from the hall. 

Maeri and Alva couldn’t stop their laughter at his quick exit, however, it did catch in their throats when they noticed the second person to swiftly leave was the Earl’s second-hand. In the grandest display of emotion they had ever seen from her; her lips were bent into a frown. Then she was gone. The girls looked at eachother, suddenly feeling some sort of pity for the woman they so frequently made fun of. They shook it off though as they too exited the hall and returned to their respective homes. 

As they approached her farmhouse Maeri couldn’t help but feel giddy about reuniting her parents and Lukell with Julaeka. She burst through the front door, “Tomin! Julaeka! Come quick!” They practically appeared out of nowhere they arrived so quickly. Their eyes set upon the group in the doorway and they ran. 

Julaeka jumped into Lukell’s arms, laughing and crying hysterically as he swung her around in a circle and clung her to his chest. “Je suis désolé! Je suis vraiment désolé Jules! Je ne te quitterai plus jamais! Jamais! Je promets!” He began crying into her tiny shoulder as he apologized but she just laughed harder.

“Oui, tu le feras!” She giggled, “juste jamais si longtemps.” His laugh barked out between cries.

“Bien sûr, bien sûr." He shook his head at her brevity.  _ How many toddlers hear a promise of never leaving and respond so maturely? _ Maeri thought as she turned to her parents, they hadn’t said a word.

Tomin, being so much larger than Sabjorn, was fully wrapped around her. They radiated comfort and joy, Maeri didn’t know how to describe it. Just looking at them made her feel ecstatic. She stood almost awkwardly between the two hugs, basking in the happiness. Next thing she knew her parents had absorbed her into their embrace. “I love you both so much,” her father finally spoke up. He picked up his head and looked at Lukell and Julaeka, “come here, you too.” Lukell smiled as he moved toward them. The hug was more off a round ball of love at that point. They stayed like that for a while.

\--)-(----)-(--

Eventually, the hug broke so everyone could get ready to attend the feast. Tomin and Sabjorn decided to stay back, Maeri figured Alva’s parents would too and thought to bring Julaeka over to play with Rosik. She and Lukell, finally dressed in new, clean clothes, began toward Alva’s home. When they arrived Maeri noticed Alva outside, shaking slightly as she sat against the stump nearby. “Hey!” She called, “ready to g-” she stopped in her tracks. She realized she was crying. Maeri told Lukell to stay where he was for a minute while she approached her. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

She sniffled, wiping her eyes before looking up. “I’m uh… I’m not going to the feast Maeri.”

She frowned, “oh, well that’s ok! That’s not that bad, I’m sure it will be a bore anyway!” _Now it surely will_ , she thought, Alva was usually her entertainment at such events. 

Alva shook her head, “no, Maeri, that’s not why I’m upset.” She sighed, sniffling again, “my parents… they told me why they hate the Hagrestas so much and- and- and I’m not sure I can- I can’t- I can’t be near them now.”

“Even Aldarin?” Maeri asked quietly, already feeling bad for considering her friend group before her friend. 

“For now, but I know he is innocent in this matter.” Maeri started patting her back, kneeling beside her. “Do you want to know what happened Maeri?”

She knit her brows, she did not want to upset her friend further but Alva was a talker, it usually helped her calm down. “Sure,” she nodded.

“His brother, Felaks, he- he-” she began sobbing again, “he raped my mother and- and-” she began shaking violently, burying her face in her hands.

“You don’t have to tell me if you don-”

“He likely fathered Rosik!” She hissed. “My sweet sister descended from that- that beast.” She spat. 

Maeri felt tears welling up in her own eyes, how could such a despicable human and such a despicable action produce such a loving child. Her hate for Felaks began to boil, “are- are you sure he…?”

“Well,” she sniffed, “we cannot know for sure but between the timing and the hair… her hair is so light and the rest of ours is so…  _ dark _ . She and my mother are like specs of sand in a handful of dirt.” She almost growled as her anger began to take hold, “that bitch, the Jarl. He humiliated my family when they told him what had happened, he called my mother crazy and my father jealous.” She spat on the ground. “I hate him. I hate them all. Aldarin was surely oblivious but his mother knew, she was there when they were confronted and she did nothing. That bitch we just saved.” She stood, dusting off her shoulders. “Now, you should leave. You’ll be late.” She intended to speak sweetly but the bitter bite in her voice was barely hidden.

“I don’t think we’ll go.” Maeri stood with her, “would you like us to hang out with you or leave you be?” Alva shrugged, “how about we fetch Nidho and leave you  _ two _ be?” Alva smirked at the notion.

“You’re funny.” She chided with a sigh, “but do send him over. I would like to let him pamper my sorrows away.” She winked wistfully.

“As you wish, my friend.” Maeri chuckled as she began to move back to the confused Lukell standing a short walk away. She briefly turned, “I am very sorry Alva, that is terrible news.”

“I know, I am finding that most news is terrible.”

“I’m not so sure about that,” Maeri crossed her arms, “there is plenty of good news to be shared.” With a quick wink she turned and met Lukell.

“Is she okay?” He asked quietly.

“No,” she looked to the side, “but who is?” He snorted, bouncing Julaeka against his chest gently.

“We’re not going to the feast are we?”

She shook her head, beginning to walk, “we are going to get Nidho though, and then we will head home.” He smiled, tenderly placing a kiss against her cheek.

“Sounds good to me. I wanted to spend the night with you two anyway.” He hugged Julaeka closer and bopped Maeri on the head with his own.

She giggled, “good. Alors, nous passerons la nuit à jouer!" She scrunched her nose at the little toddler.

“Yes,” she laughed, “let’s play!”

Maeri gasped, beaming at Julaeka, “how did you learn to say that?!” The toddler lifted a brow at her, clearly not understanding a word she said.

Lukell started laughing, “I guess she doesn’t learn  _ that  _ fast.” Maeri started laughing too, and poor Julaeka, with no clue what they were saying, started pounding on Lukell’s head. Which only made him laugh harder while trying to shoo her off. “Stop it Jules! Stop! Staaaahp!” She did not.

“We are just playing Julaeka, just playing!” Maeri threw her arms up in innocence, attempting to save her Luka from his sister’s wrath. 

She stuck her nose in the air and crossed her arms, “je n’aime pas ce jeu.” The poor girl just made them laugh harder.

“Alright, alright,” Lukell surrendered, “je suis désolé Jules, nous arrêterons, nous nous arrêterons."

They quickly found Nidho’s little cottage-house and told him to go to Alva. Then they returned home, playing for a little while before falling asleep in each other’s arms. Lukell wrapped around Julaeka, Maeri wrapped around Lukell. Finally, reunited and resting.


End file.
